No Turning Back
by StraightLife116
Summary: Mark Calaway has been grieving for years over the tragic loss of his wife and kids. How will a young girl help change his outlook on life? Or will he change hers? Taker and others to make appearances.
1. Chapter 1

_I've always wanted love. I guess I never really knew what it was and I guess I still don't. Life's just too complicated. I mean how exactly can I describe love? Is it a touch, a feeling, a look? Sitting here in this room tucked down in a corner, isn't my idea of love. I know I should be happy that I'm not being beaten or locked in a closet anymore, but I still long for more. I want truly what every kid my age in my situation wants…a family. A group of people to love me and hold me when I cry. Someone who I could really depend on to never leave me. I guess that will never happen, you see, I'm not a 'good' kid. I've got all sorts of emotional issues, I can't stand being in small places for too long, the darkness still scares me, and I'm twelve years old. You'd think my sunny disposition or my brains would help me out in this area, but I've been essentially deemed unadoptable, destined to forever be alone without parents. Locked alone in my world of poems and thoughts. A bleak existence for sure. Oh well, do I what I always do, push through and survive. :D _

A slim woman in her early thirties walked into the room and frowned. Where was she? Then it dawned on her, of course…empty room, peaceful setting, she was on the floor journaling. For the last seven years it was the only thing that kept her sane. Slowly she walked toward the front of the room and smiled. Sure enough there she was journaling with her headphones on. She knelt down. "Autumn, it's time to go." Autumn looked up and took off her headphones. She gave a smile for Sammy her counselor who was sticking out her hand to help her up. Sammy loved Autumn, she was the nicest and most polite twelve year old she'd ever known. A real catch for any parent, problem was few parents were fishing for a twelve and a half year old girl. But if her plan worked right, that would all change very soon. Very very soon. She smiled slyly to herself. "Come on Autumn, we've got lots to do today." Autumn smiled at her sweetly. For the last few years, every Friday Sammy would take Autumn with her to do her errands and help out around the office. It wasn't the most fun adventure, but Autumn loved being away from the group home and spending quality time with someone. For Autumn, it was the closest thing to love that she'd ever get.

They were driving down the highway toward the office listening to show tunes. Autumn was happily sipping away on her Slurpee and bouncing to the radio. Sammy was over the moon that she could make Autumn happy with just the simplest things in life. Seriously, this girl was one special kid. It broke Sammy's heart that the only thing place she could help her in was these Friday trips. She rarely saw her during the week and if she did it was a report had been filed that she was bullied. Tough, thing about it is Autumn she never let it get her down. She still smiled, she was still bubbly, and she was still easy to love. Man, she hoped this would work. Autumn didn't deserve to live like this.

Soon they turned into the office building. Autumn's smile faded for just a moment and then she plastered her usual smile on her face. No matter how bad life was, when Sammy was around it was a good day. Nothing would stop her happiness. Sammy grabbed Autumn's hand and the walked into the building giggling. Autumn just made Sammy a better person by just being herself. It was truly inspirational. Autumn giggled happily as she started straightening up the desk up. Sammy couldn't help but smile, only Autumn would be thrilled to clean. Her phone started to ring. Ok, here's the plan going into action. "Autumn, I'm going to go and meet someone in the parking lot I'll be right back ok?" Autumn nodded and smiled happily before she went back to cleaning. Sammy took one last glance back at Autumn before heading out to the parking lot. She smiled when she saw the tall man with long black hair smiling at her. They shared a quick hug.

"Hey Sam."

"Hey Mark." Sammy couldn't help but to notice that he was visibly smaller than when he last saw her. It was like he was just giving up. "How you holdin' up?" Mark's smiled faded and was replaced by a look of indifference. He merely shrugged.

"Day by day." Sammy nodded, she couldn't fathom losing your spouse and your children all in one day. Mark shook his head, he'd never been one for pity. "So what made you call me after all these years? Last time I saw you, Trent was just a toddler." Sammy's heart broke when she noticed the cringe Mark held as he said his youngest son's name. Sammy tried to act like she hadn't noticed. She shrugged and gave a soft smile.

"Well, I've been busy. These kids give me a lot to do. Besides, I didn't want to bother you guys." Mark frowned, she was up to something and a bad liar. She always had been.

"Right." Sammy gave a look of hurt.

"Mark, you know that night things were said. I thought I was making it easier." Sammy wrapped her arms around herself in an attempt to make all the pain go away. Mark wanted to kick himself. That night he'd been drunk and was a rocky time in his marriage. He'd made the mistake of releasing all of his anger onto her and their friendship was irreparably damaged. He honestly didn't remember anything from that night other than the blanks that other people had filled in for him. He put his large hand on her shoulder.

"You know I didn't mean that stuff I said, I was drunk and angry." Sammy moved his hand and shook her head.

"No, its fine. That's all in the past. I've forgiven you." Mark looked skeptical. "Would I have called you if I hadn't?" Mark nodded that did make sense. There was a long pause between them. "Mark, I sort of need a favor." Mark rolled his eyes, of course. He urged her with his eyes to continue. "Well, I know you and Allie were big time donators to the home and well…" she paused, this was harder than she had intended. Mark grabbed her hand.

"Sammy, it's ok. I know I owe you. How much do you need?" Sammy smiled, if it were only that easy.

"Well, you see I don't need any money." Mark's eyebrows rose. Sammy took a deep breath, she needed to get this out. "There's this little girl who needs a home and—" before she could finish Mark held up his hand and backed away violently shaking his head.

"No. Sammy are you nuts?" He was practically yelling. Autumn heard noises from the parking lot and took off her head phones. She could see Sammy and a tall man in the parking lot having a discussion or an argument of some sort. Her heart muscles started to restrict, should she help her? No Sammy could handle herself, but the biker guy looked scary. What should she do?

Sammy smiled, at Mark. "No, I'm not nuts. Mark it's been two years and you still haven't moved on. You need something or someone to help you out. This little girl needs someone too. It's a win win." Mark shook his head.

"Stay out of my business!" That scream almost shook the earth. "You call me after what? Six years? You didn't even talk to me at the funeral and you think you know how I'm doing. Please." Sammy was taken aback by Mark's furious outburst. Before she knew what was happening she had tears coming from her eyes. Mark grunted he'd forgotten how easily women could cry.

Meanwhile, Autumn was still standing watch from the window. Mark was so loud that she heard his outburst. She knew anger when she saw it. With all the gusto she had in her small body she grabbed a broom stick and rand down the steps, she just hoped she wasn't too late.

"Sammy, I'm sorry." He shook his head. "I didn't mean to scream at you. I just don't know anything about little girls. Alls I've ever had was boys." She heard him visibly sigh and then start grunting. It was like the wheels in his brain was turning.

"I guess I owe you two now, huh?" Sammy laughed a bit, he was always a fair man.

"Yeah, I guess you do." Mark sighed.

"What's her name?" Sammy smiled. Mark chuckled and stuck his finger in Sammy's face. Before he could get his words out Autumn came running out of the building swinging furiously. She got one good shot in catching the broom handle flush with Mark's shin before Sammy grabbed the broom handle. She was hoping Mark wouldn't change his mind now.

"Autumn, why'd you do that?" Autumn looked between the large man who was now glaring at her and rubbing his shin and Sammy. She lowered her head.

"I thought he was going to hurt you," she said with her head down just above a whisper. Sammy shook her head and pulled her close rubbing her back soothingly.

"No, Sweetie, Mark's an old friend, we were just talking. "

"Oh, I heard him yelling and I thought -" her head was still down and now she was feeling really dumb. "I'm sorry." Mark looked on at Sammy, at first he was furious when the kid had struck him with the broom, now he just felt sorry for her. She seemed so fragile. Sammy gently grabbed Autumn's shoulders and turned her to face Mark. "What do you say?" Autumn kept her head toward the pavement. Sammy sighed. "Come on pick your head up, we've practiced this. Go on." Slowly Autumn's head rose and she met Mark's green eyes.

"Sir, I'm sorry I hit you with the broom." Mark looked deep into the little girls eyes, they were sincere. He nodded. Sammy smiled, he didn't seem too upset.

"Autumn, why don't you go sit on the step for a minute? I need to talk to Mark for a few more minutes." Autumn nodded and walked away. She set the broomstick on the ground and rested her chin on her hands.

Sammy smiled as she watched Autumn drop down on the sidewalk. She'd be fine in a few minutes. Mark glanced at Sammy and then back at Autumn.

"It's her isn't it?" Sammy smiled with obvious guilt and nodded. Mark took a deep breath. "She's sure a beauty." Sammy's eyes narrowed. "She's going to be an enigma that's for sure." Sammy relaxed, she knew better, Mark was a good man.

"Thank you for doing this." Mark shrugged.

"Somehow I think it's what Allie would have wanted me to do. She always did love these kids." That was true, Allie was a big fan of foster kids. She used to volunteer with them several times a week. "Is there anything I should know about her?" Sammy held her breath, this was always the question that sent prospective parents running for the hills.

"Well, she doesn't talk much and gets scared easily, but other than that she's a normal kid." Sammy hated lying but this had to work. There was no more options. Mark nodded.

"So when shall I pick her up?" Sammy let out her breath, it had seemed like eternity for Mark's answer.

"Well, I've got some stuff to do here, but if you want you can take her to go and get her stuff and I'll be you back at your house." Mark rubbed his chin.

"Is she ok with that? I don't think the old shin can take another broomstick shot." Sammy and Mark both laughed.

"Stay here, I'll go and talk to her. " Mark nodded. As Sammy approached Autumn she saw the girl visibly flinch. Sammy groaned inwardly, she'd though that was over by now. She slowly sat down next to Autumn. She pulled her close. "Hey there."

"Hi," Autumn said shyly. Sammy took a deep breath.

"I think I've got you a family, if you want one." Autumn's head rose quickly.

"Really?" Sammy smiled.

"Yep, but it's only if you agree, ok?" Autumn nodded quickly. That's just what she had written in her journal before. She smiled and then frowned.

"Is this permanent or temporary?" Sammy closed her eyes tightly. This kid was just too smart. Autumn saw Sammy's reaction. "I don't wanna do temporary, I'd rather not get my hopes up." Sammy pulled her close, what could she say to that?

"How about we just see how things go?" Autumn gave a soft smile, she was only doing this for Sammy. Sammy grabbed Autumn's hand and led her back towards Mark. "Mark Callaway meet Autumn Lewis. Autumn, this is the guy you're going to be staying with." Autumn's breath caught in her chest. This man? Mark smiled down at the little girl and stuck out his hand.

"It's nice to meet you Autumn." She glanced at Sammy who smiled.

"Same," she said softly. Sammy took a deep breath, this would take some adjusting.

"Autumn, Mark here is going to take you to get your stuff from the group home and then I'm going to meet you at his place ok?" Autumn, trusted Sammy so she nodded ignoring that her mind was screaming at her to disagree. Mark and Sammy smiled at each other. Mark motioned for Autumn to follow and she glanced at Sammy who nodded. There's no turning back.


	2. Chapter 2

_Last night after Sammy left, Mark came in a told me good night and that he was happy I was here. I could tell he didn't mean it. All throughout dinner he kept grunting and responding with short answers. I'm not sure if not being wanted hurts more than being beaten, but either way it still hurts. I know it's only been a few hours, but I miss Sammy. She told me I could call her if I ever needed anything, but everyone says that. It's around dinner time now I guess, but I don't really know, if Mark wants me to cook or if he's eating alone and I'm eating alone. I wish someone would tell me what's going on. Sammy did tell me that I start school on Tuesday, I guess that's something to look forward to. I guess I shouldn't be complaining. This is a nice house and I have my own room, but it's really just like being back in the group home. I do my own thing and everyone else does there's. Only thing is I'm not being made fun of. That's a good thing I guess. _

Mark walked upstairs and made a right. He'd put her in the old guest bedroom. Even though he'd donated all of his boy's stuff to charity and the rooms were barren, he still couldn't fathom allowing someone else to sleep in there. It was like sacred ground. He sighed. The little girl was little trouble to him, in fact she barely made any noise at all. After he put her to bed last night, she hadn't come out of her room since. It was nearing six and she had to be hungry. He felt badly, was she expecting him to give her permission? Gently he knocked on the door. When there was no response he slowly opened it. She was sitting next to her bed on the floor journaling with her headphones on. "Autumn?" No response. "Autumn," he said louder. He jumped at the sound of his voice and slowly took off her headphones.

"Sir?" Mark's eyes narrowed, she was supposed to be bubbly. Maybe it would just take some time.

"Are you hungry?" Autumn eye's averted his stare and slowly nodded. Mark grunted. "Well come on then, I'll make us some dinner." She nodded and gently set her stuff on her bed. Autumn glanced around the house again and marveled as she looked at how big the house was. She hoped she hadn't angered him by making him do more work than necessary. After all he was used to eating alone. Mark glanced back at her chuckled as he watched her stare in awe at the house. "Big isn't it?" Autumn nodded and continued looking around.

Mark quickly made them dinner by reheating some spaghetti, garlic bread, and a side salad. He set the bowls on the table and waited for her to dig in. She hesitated. "You can eat you know, it won't bite you." Autumn nodded and slowly reached for the big bowl of spaghetti. Mark watched her in fascination, she was definitely an enigma. She looked at the salad but it was too far away, she knew better than to reach across the table and grab it so she refrained. Mark smiled, she was avoiding asking him for it. "Can I help you with something?" Autumn looked at him and shook her head. Mark frowned. Try a new approach. "Would you like the salad?" Autumn took a deep breath, she might as well. She nodded. Mark smiled back and handed her the bowl. She smiled and scooped some salad onto her plate. Then it was the salad dressing. Mark knew she'd have to ask to get it and wanted to see how she would react. He laughed to himself as her face twisted because of the strong lettuce flavor. Mark figured he'd help her out. "Would you like some dressing?" Autumn slowly nodded. Mark figured this might be a good time to get her talking. "Ok, if you can ask me for the dressing I'll give it to you." Autumn sighed, she'd always had difficulty talking to people she dint know well, that's usually why people picked on her, they thought she was dumb. "You can do it. Mark can you pass me the dressing?"

"Mr. Mark can you pass me the dressing please?" Mark smiled and handed her the dressing.

"Sure, but next time just call me Mark ok?" She gave a small nod. The next twenty minutes consisted of Mark trying to pull bits of information out of her. She just didn't seem to want to budge. Finally, when dinner was over, she grabbed her plate off of the table, cleared it and put it in the sink. She returned for Mark's plate and started washing both dishes by hand. Mark sat at the table in awe. Usually you had to threaten a kid to get them to do the dishes. He just hoped she was doing it for the right reasons. Sammy had said that sometimes kids would 'people please' in order to get their prospective parents to like them. Mark got up and gently grabbed her hand and led her back towards the table. He motioned for her to sit down. Autumn was holding her breath, did she make him mad? Mark looked deep into her eyes, there were full of turmoil. "Autumn, honey don't be scared ok?" She nodded. "Alright, let's get some things out of the way ok? That way you know what I expect and you know what to expect ok?" She nodded again. "Alright, first thing is, when I talk to you, you've gotta answer me ok?" She started to nod when Mark raised his eyebrow at her.

"Yes sir." Mark smiled, this would be way easier than he'd thought.

"Ok, I really appreciate you doing the dishes but you don't have to do them every night. We can switch." Autumn smiled, that was really nice of him. "Alright you have to do your homework every night, no exceptions got it?"

"Yes sir." Mark smiled.

"I don't think I have to worry about you being dirty, but if you are just clean your mess up. If you want to make food, fine. Anything in the fridge is yours. This is your house too, ok?"

"Yes sir." Mark couldn't help but to smile at this small girl with those big brown eyes.

"Ok, and you've gotta be in bed no later than ten o'clock." Autumn didn't like that one and frowned. Mark smiled. "Do you have a problem with that?" Autumn looked at her feet. Mark grabbed her hand. "Just tell me what's on your mind, I promise as long as you can are respectful with your grievances I won't get angry at you." Autumn looked into his big green eyes, she saw sincerity but wasn't sure how to take it.

"Um, I would like to go to bed at twelve. I usually can't sleep before that." Mark started to think, he could use this to get her out of her shell, or it could backfire.

"Well, I think twelve is a bit too late for a twelve year old, but if you could come up with a good reason why, I might reconsider." Autumn contemplated and looked at Mark who was smiling.

"Well, ever since I was little I haven't slept well. I usually have nightmares. So when I try to sleep in the day time. That way I have less time to get scared at night and relieve those memories." She hoped that would work because Mark really needed to let her stay up later than ten. Starting off on the wrong foot would be bad.

"How about, this? On school nights you're in bed by ten thirty but twelve on weekends?" Autumn sighed, she really didn't think this would work. "Don't worry, I have an idea to help you sleep better. Trust me you'll be fine." Autumn shrugged.

"I guess." Mark smiled, finally he'd gotten more than 'yes sir'. He glanced at his watch, it was Sunday night and he was hoping to watch some football, but he wanted to connect with this small girl. "Would you like to watch some football with me?" Autumn shrugged, she never really liked football but if Mark liked it then she could try and like it. Mark placed his hand on her shoulder. He sat down in his big recliner that took the pressure off of his knees and she sat down on the love seat right next to him.

The game drug on and seemed to last for eternity. Autumn was beyond bored. The only good thing about the game was Mark was engrossed in it and wasn't asking her a thousand and one questions like he had during the early game. She really wanted to journal or listen to music. Mark glanced at her and she was clearly uninvolved. The boys were always interested in football, he hoped she wasn't one of those super girly girls.

"Autumn, I think it's time for bed." Autumn looked incredulously at the clock just above the TV mounted on the wall.

"It's only nine thirty!" She caught herself and quickly covered her mouth. Mark smiled, she wanted to come out of her shell but her mind wouldn't let her.

"I know, but we've gotta get up early tomorrow to get you some clothes and school supplies. Then we have to sign you up for flag football." Autumn's face dropped, football? Mark laughed at her. "Relax, I'm kidding no football, I was thinking more like soccer." Autumn sighed, it's better than football. She'd played soccer at the group home it was one of the few things she was good at. Mark stood up and knelt down in front of her. "I'm not going to say that I'll be the best father, but I'm gonna promise you that I'll never stop trying." Autumn took a deep breath, father? "Alright, go and take a shower then I'll come and say goodnight." Autumn smiled, he seemed really nice.

Autumn was sitting in her bed ready to go to sleep. She had journaled a bit and wrote some poetry. Now she was praying that she could sleep through the night. That would be really horrible if she woke up screaming. Mark knocked on the door and then gently opened it. He saw her bag was now fully unpacked. It made him happy that she was getting comfortable. "Ready for bed?"

"I guess so." Mark looked at her small frame and hair done in braids to sleep in. She smiled.

"I hope you have good dreams tonight. No nightmares." Autumn rolled her eyes but smiled, he was trying to be nice. "Can I have a hug?" Autumn took a deep breath and nodded slowly. The hug was short but not done without love. A small connection was placed between them that night, with a gesture as small as a hug.


	3. Chapter 3

"You remember how to get home?" Autumn nodded. The two weeks of school had been smooth with Mark picking her up and dropping her off. But now he was going back to his job at his gym and was expecting her to get herself home.

"Yes sir." Mark smiled, she'd come a long way in the last two weeks, but he was still nervous about letting her ride home by herself.

"Remember, you go straight home after school and then you lock up. Don't open the door for anyone. I'll be home around four to take you to soccer practice. Ok?" Autumn nodded again. Her hands were clasped onto the steering wheel of her blue and pink bike. She was patiently waiting for Mark's overprotective rant to finish so she could just get to class before anyone noticed who he was. "Do you have your cell phone?" She nodded. "Make sure you call me as soon as you get home, ok? Autumn looked at him incredulously. Mark chuckled, it had been a while since he was responsible for someone else. He guessed he was overdoing it. "Alright, gimme a hug and get to class." Autumn smiled to herself. She was so happy that his rant was over that hugging him wasn't that big a deal. Today he did something different he kissed the top of her head before she could scurry away from him. He couldn't help but to smile at her. Great, he was getting attached. He had to shake it off, but for some reason he couldn't seem to take his eyes off of her and found himself staring at the front doors even after she had already passed through them. He sighed, Trent would be going to this school now. Quickly he wiped away a stray tear. Before he could lose any more of his self-respect he pulled his truck away from the school and onto the road. He just hoped she was adjusting.

Autumn walked the hallway and toward her locker. Willow Parks was a school full of preps and rich kids. She could never consider herself either. For the most part she was just a foster kid going here. Cliques meant nothing to her and friends were an even more far off notion. People would hurt you, by getting close to you and then without notice stabbing you in the back. That had happened one too many times for her to let it happen again. She honestly hoped that she could get through the school year without having had cried at school. Kids can be cruel, she knew that. She took her usual seat in the back of the room and readied herself to learn pre-algebra.

"Hey, um can you pass me my pencil? It kinda dropped." Autumn shook the cobwebs from her head and nodded. She reached down and grabbed the pencil only to come up with spit on her hands. The blonde haired girl smiled menacingly at her. Autumn shook her head and wiped the disgusting saliva on her jeans and then sanitized her hands. Why would someone do that? The rest of the class period was a blur. Autumn was too upset to listen to anything the teacher was saying. It never made sense to her as to why people would be mean to someone else just because. She sighed as she walked to her next class.

Mark was sitting at his desk in the gym going over payroll and other usual tasks. He found himself wondering about Autumn. She'd been really shut mouthed about school. He hoped nothing was going on that he should worry about. As much as it made his heart told him not to, that little girl was becoming a part of him. There was a knock at the door. He motioned Mitch inside.

"Hey boss." Mark smiled, Mitch was a bit of his protégé. He'd been his employee since he'd retired from wrestling two years ago. The kid was a natural and destined for the WWE one day. They had a perfect working relationship. He was mentor with sage advice and Mitch was mentee who was willing to learn. Outside of the wrestling business, Mitch although only in his mid-twenties was a bit of a confidant for Mark.

"Hey Hammer, how was things while I was out?" Mitch shrugged.

"Very usual, nothing out of the ordinary. How's things at home with the kid?" Mark glanced around quickly, only Mitch knew about Autumn.

"They're good, she's settling in." Mitch smiled, whether Mark knew it or not, the kid brought Mark a spark that he hadn't seen before. Of course he'd never have the guts to tell him that.

"So, how old is she?"

"Twelve almost thirteen." Mitch laughed. Oh yeah, this kid had Mark's heart alright. His voice was practically singing. Mark noticed Mitch's smile and his faded. "Back to work, slacker. What am I paying your for?" Mitch laughed and put his hands up in surrender.

"Alright, I'm goin'." Mark shook his head.

"And close the door!" Mark hated showing his emotions. Little girl was making him weak, he'd like that recluse he'd been for two years. It was safe, it was happy, it was free.

Autumn sighed, the day was dragging by slowly. It was her third week at this school and her only friend was in science class. Other than fifth period the day was torturous and boring. Miss blonde bombshell and her posse decided to make her life miserable because it was fun, especially at lunch. So she resorted to eating on the back steps. It was quiet and a good place to gather her thoughts to journal. Soon she slipped her headphones on and started journaling. She nibbled on her sandwich Mark had made her. He seemed to enjoy being a dad again. Someone kicked her foot. Autumn looked up.

"Hey, what are you doing?" Autumn was clearly startled this girl's presence, she'd been out here every day since last Thursday and no one had bothered her.

"Uh, nothing. Just eating lunch." The girl nodded half uninterestedly and sat down next to Autumn.

"Eliza and her posse making your life miserable?" Autumn couldn't do anything but grunt causing the girl to laugh. "No worries, she's the devil. Just stick with me and life will be good." Autumn raised her eyebrow. "Hannah." Autumn nodded and they pounded fists.

"Autumn." Hannah nodded. Autumn smiled at this girl with baggy basketball shorts, multiple piercings, and a hoodie.

"So you're obviously new here. Where'd you come from?" This was always a difficult question for Autumn. This chick seemed normal and not evil. Here's that leap of faith that Sammy's always talking about.

"I just moved here to stay with my dad." Hmm, was that a lie? Can't give it all away ,right?

"Cool, my parents could care less about me. That is unless I broke some law or something, then they'd be pissed." Autumn raised her eyebrow. "My dad's the district attorney. So trouble would look really bad for him." Now it made sense to Autumn. Rebelling against people not caring about you. Hannah noticed the track jacket Autumn was wearing. It was her club soccer team's the Falcons. Hannah smiled.

"I'm a Falcon too." Autumn looked at her incredulously. "I was suspended for the first week of this year because I kicked some chick in the face in the last game of the year. And I we were on a 'family' vacation last week. "Autumn smiled, this could turn out to be a good friendship. The lunch bell went off and both girls stood up. "Where do you live?"

"Uh, off Coleridge around the bend." Hannah nodded.

"Meet me back here and we can walk home together." It wasn't a suggestion, so Autumn nodded. She just hoped Mark would be okay with it. Autumn put her journal in her bag and followed the usual hallway to her last class of the day. Whoever came up with seven periods in a day? Luckily seventh period was her art period and she could just draw or paint and be totally fine with it. Her art teacher my Syme was really cool and let them listen to music to get into their creative places. She couldn't help but to be ecstatic, minus this morning's spit the day was really turning around. She took off her apron and smiled. Today was definitely looking up.

"Autumn, can you come here please?" Autumn's heart caught in her throat. Was she in trouble? All the other kids scurried out of the room as Autumn grabbed her backpack and headed towards the front of the room. Mr. Syme smiled at her as she headed towards him. "Don't worry you're not in trouble." Autumn let her body deflate and took a deep breath. "I was wondering if you'd like to show some of your art at an art expo for the school. All the grades will be there but if you win you get 250 dollars." Woah, that was a lot of money. Autumn shrugged. "You don't have to decide today, but if you do just ring this permission slip back and I'll help you all I can ok?" Autumn nodded.

"Thank you." Mark was constantly on her to answer adults, she was somewhat proud of herself to have done it without taking a deep breath before she spoke. She turned to walk out of the room and down the hallway. Good day it was. Hannah was standing where she said she'd be and smiled when she saw Autumn.

"Hey."

"Hey. I've gotta get my bike and then we can go." Hannah shrugged.

"Sure." Autumn smiled softly.

They were walking toward her house and talking away. Well Hannah was doing most of the talking, but would answer when prompted. It was really cool to have someone to hang out with. After about fifteen minutes of walking they finally made it to her house.

"Woah, your house is big." Autumn shrugged.

"It's not that big, I'm sure your house is pretty huge, your dad's a district attorney." Hannah nodded.

"True, I just don't like to show off." Autumn laughed. Neither did she. She pulled out her see and disarmed the alarm and then reset it per Mark's orders.

"You want something to drink?" Hannah shrugged and Autumn pulled out two sodas.

"Let's go into the movie room." Hannah nodded.

Mark was going insane. It was past three and he hadn't heard from Autumn, her phone was going straight to voicemail and she wasn't answering the house phone. He kept telling himself that she was fine, but he couldn't go through this again. He had to know. "Hammer I'm going home for the day, see you in the morning." Mitch nodded and watched Mark move quickly toward his truck clearly troubled. Mark drove down the road as fast as he could. He couldn't fathom having something bad happen to her just three weesk after having met her. These red lights were killing him, it seemed like he was catching every one of them. This twenty minute journey was turning into about half an hour. He kept driving as he dialed her cell phone repeatedly. Still no answer. Man, he hoped she was ok. Please don't let her be hurt. Please.

Autumn and Hannah were laughing and watching VH1 as they ate popcorn in the movie room. It wasn't Autumn's first choice but Hannah insisted. It wasn't that bad, they were watching I love the 90s. Autumn was quite intrigued, because she hadn't been aware of any of this happening. Who would have known, Mel Gibson was in Braveheart? Autumn accidentally hit the channel guide and noticed the time: 3:21. She gasped, she was supposed to call Mark like an hour and a half ago. "I'll be right back, I've gotta make a phone call." Hannah nodded still engrossed in the TV show. Autumn quickly walked through the house and found her bag. She dug out her cell phone and turned it on. Sixteen missed calls. She started to panic. She didn't want to worry Mark. As fast as she could he went through her contact list and hit Mark's number, but it was too late. She looked up to see a very angry looking Mark Callaway staring at her. Before she could speak he started to yell.

"Didn't I tell you to call me? My God, I was worried sick!" Autumn couldn't take it, loud noises always scared her. She stared at the floor. "Answer me!" That was the last straw and Autumn burst into tears. It was rarer these days that it happened but crying was something she knew all too well. It wasn't in her disposition to enjoy confrontation, especially not when someone was seven feet tall and fuming. Mark felt like a heel, he hadn't meant to make her cry, he was just scared and worried. He fidgeted slightly on his feet and then walked towards her. Slowly he bent down on one knee.

"Sugar, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to yell at you. I was just worried." The tears were still coming in droves. Mark didn't know what to, he felt horrible. Sammy had told him that loud noises and yelling scared her. Mark decided to take a chance and wrapped her in a hug pulling her close to his chest. To his surprise she didn't pull away. He started rubbing her back. "Ssh, it's ok I'm not mad." He sat there and repeated that phrase over and over for a few minutes until her tears were down to a minimum. Even when she stopped Mark continued to rub her back. "Are you ok, now?" Autumn nodded. Mark pulled her away from his chest and looked at her. He wiped her tears with the pads of his thumb. He gave her a soft smile. "I'm real sorry about makin' you cry." Autumn took a deep breath.

"It's ok, it's not your fault I'm a crybaby," she said with a small smile. Mark smiled, that was the first time she got a glimpse of her bubbliness. "Besides, you told me to call you and I didn't. it's my own fault. I'm scatterbrained sometimes is all." That made Mark frown.

"Hey now, don't let me catch you putting yourself down. You're a real smart girl and my kid. And no kid of mine is gonna be puttin' themselves down, got it?" Autumn rolled her eyes and saluted him.

"Yes sir, coach." Mark rolled his eyes and pulled her close and started tickling her. Autumn started giggling. Despite the fact that she was totally thrown off by Mark referring to her as 'his' kid. Hannah walked into the kitchen in the midst of the spectacle. Mark frowned at her appearance. Several piercings and baggy shorts. She could be a bad influence.

"Hey Autumn you think your dad would mind if I could get a ride with you to soccer practice?"

"Well I'll be. Who's this Ladybug?" Mark looked down at Autumn who was avoiding eye contact with him. Mark gave her a look at and stuck out his hand towards Hannah. "Mark Callaway, Ladybug's father." Autumn was shifting her weight uncomfortably. This was awkward.

"Hannah McCarthy." She paused inspecting the tall man from head to toe than the burst out laughing. "Ladybug? That's hilarious. You're one of those types who gives their kids pet names. Cute." Mark glanced at Autumn who again avoided eye contact. Mark frowned, they'd talk about this later.

"So if you girls want a ride to practice we better get goin'? Ladybug go an' grab your bag." Autumn looked at him. "I put it on your bed this morning." She nodded and ran up to her room to grab her bag. Hannah turned to Mark.

"I heard you yell at her, and he eyes are red, did you hit her?" Mark looked at the young girl. Hannah's eyes were narrow and she looked ready to pounce. Mark didn't think he had to explain anything to a twelve year old, but for the sake of Autumn he responded.

"No, I didn't. I would never hit her."

"But you'd yell at her," she said with obvious sarcasm. Mark sighed, this little girl was starting to work his nerves.

"How I discipline my daughter is my business, little girl." Hannah rolled her eyes.

"Yeah and you did such great job, big guy." Mark frowned, he was really starting not to like her. Autumn reentered the room with her bag slung over her shoulder and in her practice gear.

"Don't you have to change too?" Hannah shook her head.

"Nope." Mark sighed, he really_ really_ hoped she wasn't a bad influence. They all piled into the Mark's truck and headed towards the soccer fields. Mark sighed as he listened to the girl's chatter in the background. It was mindless dribble about MTV, boys, and other random things that would come out of their mouths. He should be happy she has a friend, but for the most part he worried that she was a bad influence. She'd already said several words and phrases that he hoped Autumn would never think to say. He pulled up to the field and shut the truck off. Autumn froze.

"You're staying?" Mark frowned, he knew he hadn't been at any practices before but he did care about her.

"Yes, parents are allowed to do that you know." Autumn shrugged. "Do you want me to stay?" Mark took a deep breath and waited for the response. Hannah had already started walking towards the felids.

"It's up to you." Mark smiled and stepped out of the truck.

"Then I'm staying." Autumn shrugged and ran to catch up with Hannah. She was hoping he didn't think she sucked. As a forward he constantly had the ball or was running, she was really afraid that he'd be ashamed of how clumsy she was. Oh well.

Mark watched the shy young girl he'd known blossom on the soccer field. She was laughing and having fun just like all the other kids. Boy did that make his heart feel good. She was like a Gazelle running in their natural habitat so fluid in her motions. She was what you'd call a 'natural'. Stealing the ball, slicing through opponents, and scoring. That's all he saw during their hour long scrimmage. Wow. As for Hannah he could see why she hadn't need to change. She was the goalie for Autumn's team and the other team coincidentally never got near the goal. At least she had more than just a smart mouth.

All the girls were hanging around the water cooler waiting for their parents to come get them. Autumn was having a great time with them. They were all really nice. She felt at ease amongst them. She even cracked a couple of jokes on some of them and been dubbed Iggy. Why? She had no idea, but it was all in good fun. Then one of them noticed, Mark standing and talking to the coach. "Isn't that the Undertaker?" Autumn sighed, of course this would happen. Oh well, sooner rather than later right?

"No, I don't think so. He can' really be that big can he?" Autumn found this quite humorous watching them bicker amongst themselves. Then Hannah chimed in.

"He's your dad Iggy, is he the Undertaker?" Great, now she was on the spot. What should she say? Yes no, maybe. He took a deep breath, truth was always the best route.

"He was, he's retired." Hannah's smile faded.

"Wait you're serious? Your dad is the Undertaker?" Autumn slowly nodded.

"No freakin' way!" All the girls started giggling amongst themselves and asking her questions. I hope this doesn't make them like me just because I live with the Undertaker. Mark walked over to them.

"Hey Ladybug, ready to go?" Autumn shrugged and then felt a nudge in her ribs. One of her teammates wanted to be introduced.

"Uh, Dad, this is Rachel, Kylie, and Morgan. Girls this is my dad. Ok we can go now?" They all cut Autumn a funny look including Mark.

"Well it was nice to meet you Mr. Undertaker." Mark smiled now it made sense.

"It was nice to meet you girls too, see you soon." He let Autumn tug him back to the truck as quickly as possible. She visibly sighed with relief as they got into the truck. She'd successfully dodged that bullet. Thank God.

The ride home was quite peaceful. Mark spent his time smiling to himself and Autumn was in deep thought. He hadn't really said much since the soccer field. She was worried that he was embarrassed of her. That wouldn't be good. She was starting to like Mark. He was really nice. By the time they got home it was around seven. Late dinner night, so they Mark reheated some of last night's left overs. He always seemed to be cooking more than either of them could eat. They sat at the table in virtual silence until Mark spoke. "You were really good today at practice. A real natural." Autumn smiled, he seemed proud.

"Really?" Mark nodded definitively.

"Yup, I was talking to your coach and he wants you to start." Wow, that excited Autumn, she'd never thought she was that good. She smiled to herself. Mark liked to see her smile. Their miscommunication from earlier in the day was understood and all was well. There was a brief silence before Autumn spoke again.

"Mark, um there's an art expo for school, can I be in it?" Autumn was holding her breath she really wanted to do this. Mark smiled.

"Sounds fine to me, is there some sort of permission slip I need to sign?" Autumn let out her breath and nodded. He was really making this easy on her.

"Yes sir, I'll give it to you after dinner." Mark nodded. They had fallen into a nice routine and things were looking up. A phone started to ring and Autumn recognized it as hers. Mark frowned. Autumn answered it.

"Hello? Hi Hannah." They started babbling off like little old ladies Mark rolled his eyes. After about five minutes of cackling he snapped his fingers at Autumn to get her attention. "Hold on." She looked at Mark who was gesturing her to hang up with a very not so nice look on his face. Autumn sighed. "I have to go, my dad is glaring at me. Yeah I'll talk to you tomorrow." Mark looked at her.

"New rule, no phone calls or texting during dinner." Autumn looked at him incredulously.

"What? Why?"

"Because it's family time. You me and no one else." Autumn sighed, and nodded.

"Yes sir." The awkward silence returned. This time it was Mark who broke it.

"Why do you call me Dad in front of your friends and Mark at home?" Autumn dropped her eyes. She was really trying to cover her tracks and make her look normal, but she could see in his eyes hurt and confusion. She shifted uncomfortably.

"I um." She paused and blew out a breath. Tell the truth, that's all you have to do. "I didn't want to tell them that I'm a foster kid, so by calling you dad it makes me normal. I'm sorry." Mark sighed, the yearn for normal otherwise known as the mark of a teenager. He reached across the table and grabbed her hand.

"Its fine, Ladybug. Just remember this one thing?" Autumn looked at him. "You're not a foster kid, you're a Callaway kid." Autumn rolled her eyes and smiled.

"So does that make you Daddy Warbucks?" Mark grabbed her hand and pulled her towards him and started tickling her.

"Only if you grow some curls." They both fell into a fit of laughter. Problem is, laughter never lasts forever.

**Thanks to my three reviewers. You guys make it special to write….sonib89, Mattaggot, and Souless666. Lemme know what you think.**


	4. Chapter 4

_Mark has been really moody lately. It seems that his temperament can change at the drop of a hat. He has a temper like a rattlesnake and sometimes before I can brace myself he'll start screaming over nothing. It's usually not at me, but it still scares me. But other than that it's been a really smooth transition. Mark is super strict, but still really fair. I haven't really broken any of his rules other than the stupid bed time rule. He's a real stickler about that. Its not like I mean to break it, I just can't fall asleep before 12. I usually journal and listen to music until I fall asleep. It worked pretty well until last Wednesday. I was sitting on the floor with the lights out and a flashlight in my mouth so I could see. Problem came when Mark decided to do his nightly check three hours early. :( Needless to say he freaked out and started yelling. I've actually got better and have learned not to cry when he yells, he does it enough. He grabbed my hand and made me sit on the bed. I got a lecture on rules and obedience, then he surprised me and gave me a hug and kissed my forehead. Then as he was leaving he took my mp3 player and grounded me for a week. Jerk. Oh well, it's still the best place I've ever lived in. I don't know when it happened. But Mark's starting to seem like 'dad'. I know that's weird, but he's different. _

Mark sat at the Tavern staring the bottle in front of him. He'd been sober for a year now, but when it was one of their birthdays or the anniversary came up, he always found himself tempted to drown his sorrows. He'd never went to AA he just went cold turkey, he was a real man's man. No meeting was going to do something he could do himself. He really wanted to drink, but something kept stopping him. He sighed, today would have been Kyle's 18th birthday. His boy would've been a man today and it was killing him. Heavily he picked up the bottle and brought it to his lips. It seemed all the worries of his current life were out of his mind now.

Autumn was sitting on the front of the house waiting for Mark to pick her up for soccer practice. It seemed that he liked coming to games and practices. He never yelled, but he never stopped smiling at her. She loved looking up into the stands and seeing him smiling. She knew she shouldn't be waiting on the front steps for him, but It was four fifteen and he was nowhere to be found. She had called the gym, but they said he'd left hours ago. Plus, he wasn't answering his phone. She had planned on dropping the 'dad' bomb today, but she guessed that he had something more important to do than taking her to soccer. She shook her head, he hadn't cared about her at all. The time seemed to drag on without her music to pass the time. She saw a car pull into the driveway. It wasn't Mark's truck. Two large men got out and walked towards her. She started to get scared, slowly she backed away toward the house. One of them spoke to her.

"Hey there, is Mark home?" Autumn grew very scared. The other man punched the one who spoke in the arm.

"I'm sorry, my friend didn't introduce us. I'm John and this is Dave. We're some of Mark's wrestling friends." Autumn looked suspicious and Dave broke the silence.

"Do you watch wrestling?" Autumn slowly nodded, she didn't watch often but she knew who most of them were. "Well I'm Batista and this is John, do you know us?" Autumn gave a soft smile and nodded.

"Yeah, I remember." Autumn smiled to herself. She'd answer a question without even flinching maybe things were looking up for her after all.

"Sweetie, do you know where Mark is?" Autumn frowned, even though they were 'friends' should she really be giving out information? She looked at the ground. Dave smacked John in the chest.

"Dude, she's a little girl, she probably can't give us any information on Mark." Both men grunted, they knew today would be hard for Mark. The two men started talking amongst themselves, while Autumn wondered if she should let them inside. They said they were Mark's friends, would he be angry if she didn't let them in the house? She was in deep turmoil. Mark kept telling her to move past her fear and trust people. Maybe he'd be proud if she did. She took a deep breath.

"Uh, would you like to come in and wait for Mark?" Both men looked at each other and smiled. Autumn opened the door and gestured them into the kitchen. "Would you like something to drink?" Both men requested a bottle of water. Autumn sat next to them at the counter. They started engaging in some small talk.

Mark grunted as he drove home from the Tavern. He was pissed. He'd drank more than he intended, and wasn't in a good mood. Autumn would be at soccer practice so he'd at least have the next two hours to recuperate before he saw her. He'd need it. He grunted as he saw her bike lying down on the front lawn. He'd told her at least a dozen times to put it in the garage. Who's car was that? His head was starting to hurt, this day was too long and too stressful. He slammed the truck door and stalked up to the front steps. All he wanted to do was pass out for an hour or so to clear his head. God help the person who ran into him right now.

Autumn gasped when she heard the front door open violently. There she saw a very drunk looking Mark looking confused and then his green eyes turned into a blaze of fire. "Autumn." His voice was tight and clearly angry. Autumn hopped off the barstool, she knew this was too good to be true. The beatings would start now. Once it happened for the first time, they continued forever. As she got close to Mark he grabbed her arm tightly. "Didn't I tell you not to let anyone in this house, when I wasn't here?" His voice grew tighter and angrier with every word. He was leaning down and Autumn could smell the alcohol on his breath. It made her sick. She hated that stuff it always ruined her life. **ALWAYS.** Dave and John looked on in horror. Mark didn't have to take it out on her.

"Mark—" Dave tried to reason with him but Mark shut him up.

"Shutup!" He turned back to Autumn. "What were you thinking?" He started shaking her with his arm. Autumn did all she could not to cry, but her defenses were wearing thin. "Look at me!" He grabbed her other arm and made her face him. "Don't you know you could've been hurt? Huh?" Autumn shook her head she tried to talk, but all she could get was gasps of air. Mark looked her square in the eye. "Don't disobey me again." He tightened his grip and then released her with a shove. She hit the floor with a thud. Autumn looked down at her red arms and fled up the stairs. She ran into her room and locked the door, she took her desk chair and shoved it under the door as a small barricade and flung herself onto her bed. At least she could cry in peace. She had thought Mark was different. He kept telling her that he'd never hurt her, but that was all just a lie. He was just trying to gain her trust so he could betray her. Why was everyone the same? Autumn got angry in the midst of her tears. She'd broken her cardinal rule for him and he'd thrown it back in her face. She vowed to never let him get close to her again. **Never.**

Mark watched her go up the stairs and shrugged. John and Dave were glaring at him angrily. Mark rolled his eyes and walked towards the fridge. "What are you two doing at my house?"

"That was uncalled for Mark!" Dave's voice was clearly angry. He hated to see kids being mistreated. Mark shrugged again.

"I'm a grown man, I do what I want. You wanna keep ridiculin' me you can get out. That goes for you too Cena." Both men just shook their heads.

"We came by to check on you, but we know when we're not welcome. Tell the kid thanks for the water." They exited hastily leaving Mark right where he wanted to be…alone. He was better as a recluse anyway. He didn't need them, that was for sure. He didn't _need_ anybody. He walked into his room and undressed then threw himself onto the bed. He was asleep before he knew what hit him.

Autumn's tears had stopped by now and she was just hoping that Mark wouldn't try to talk to her anymore tonight, or ever. Earlier she had gone downstairs and found an old baseball bat and brought it upstairs. If he was coming she would defend herself. No more weak Autumn, that hadn't helped her a bit. Nothing had.

It was past her bedtime, but who'd care if she stayed up? Forget him, forget his rules, forget that she almost thought of him as daddy. Forget it all. She was starting over. Screw his rules, all of them.

The next morning Mark woke up, feeling rather groggy. It was nine o'clock and he'd should be heading to work. Wait, Autumn. He rubbed his eyes and blew out a breath. He couldn't remember much of yesterday other than Cena and Batista being here, but he didn't know why. He knew it was Kyle's birthday, but that was about it. He wondered why Autumn hadn't come to wake him up to take her to school. He chuckled to himself. Yeah right, what kid would willingly go to school? He shook the cobwebs from his brain and walked towards Autumn's room. He was really starting to fall in love with the little enigma. She sure could light up a room. He knocked on the door, no answer. Per usual he just opened the door. He looked around she wasn't in there. He shrugged maybe she rode her bike to school. It was a definite possibility. He walked downstairs into the kitchen.

Autumn was up and making herself a bowl of cereal. She probably should have gone to school, but she just wasn't up to it. Whether she wanted to admit it or not, she was devastated by Mark last night. For once she thought her life was looking up and now it was crashing back down in a big ball of flames. Boy this sucked. Talk about change of events. She turned to sit down at the counter and saw Mark entering the kitchen with a smile on his face. "Morning Ladybug." Autumn gave him a disgusted looked at started walking upstairs. Mark frowned at her. She knew better than to ignore him. "Hey," he said sternly with no response. "Autumn." She stopped and turned around giving him an annoyed look. "You're supposed to answer me when I talk to you, remember?" Autumn shrugged. Mark wondered what had gotten into her. Autumn turned to go upstairs once again. "Hey, you're know you're not allowed to eat in your room." Autumn sighed loudly and set the bowl on the table before turning to leave once again. Mark was really losing his patience with her. He had tried, but she was on his last nerve. "Autumn?"

"Screw you." Mark grabbed her arm and pulled her close to him then quickly let go when he saw her wince.

"What's wrong?" Autumn gave him a look of pure fire. That was the mark of a drunk alright, never remembering the pain they'd caused others. He saw her rub large bruises on her upper arms. Mark gasped. "Who did that?" Autumn laughed a laugh so sinister it scared Mark to his core.

"That's what happens when people get drunk and don't know their own strength." Mark looked at her incredulously. He knew he could be a little belligerent and cut people with words when he was drunk but bruise a little girl? His little girl, he wanted to be sick. Autumn ran upstairs to her room and locked the door. She had no idea how he'd react to the news. It could go either way. She sat on her bed with her knees pulled up to her chest gripping the bat tightly. She'd be prepared.

Mark was downstairs pacing and racking his brain, he couldn't remember anything. She didn't strike him as a liar and he wouldn't put it past himself to be unjustifiably angry, but he just couldn't fathom hurting her like that. His pain was immense, it was different than yesterday though. Guilt eats at you, this was pure disgust with himself. He couldn't control the accident, but he could have controlled his drinking. Man, he wished he could remember what had happened. He tried with all of his power but couldn't remember. He grunted as his cell phone rang.

"Cena I'm not in the mood." John chuckled.

"Yeah hangovers and guilt will do that to you. I was just calling to see how the kid was doing." Mark wondered what he was babbling about, then he remembered Cena and Batista being there sometime during yesterday.

"You know what happened?" Cena rolled his eyes, Mark never did remember anything after being drunk.

"Yes I was there. You don't remember anything do you?" Mark grunted Cena was pushing his buttons. He just wanted answers.

"No, I don't."

"Well fine, I'll tell you. You came home drunk and flipped out on Autumn because she let Dave and I in the house." Mark remembered it vaguely. "You grabbed her and started yelling at her then you shoved her and she ran upstairs. We left right after." Mark sighed.

"What time did all this happen?"

"Uh, four thirty, I guess." Mark wanted to kick himself. She was probably waiting for him to take her to soccer practice. He was a jerk.

"Thanks Cena, I'll talk to you later."

"Woah, wait a minute. I called to check on the kid, not you. How is she?" Mark rolled his eyes.

"She's fine I guess. Ran out of here a few minutes ago." John shook his head, God help the kid who had Mark as a parent. Both men hung up and Mark sighed, he'd never been one to run away from his mistakes. He picked himself up and headed towards Autumn's room. He knocked on the door gently. Autumn jumped and gripped the bat tighter. Mark sighed. "Sweetie can I come in?" No answer. "I know I scared you, I was wrong I'm sorry." Autumn shook her head, don't believe him. Drunks lie it's what they do. Mark sighed, and pulled out his keys. He knew one day he'd need to unlock the door. He unlocked it and the door popped open. Autumn gasped and Mark surveyed the room. He frowned, had he really scared her that bad into needing a bat?

"Don't come near me!" Autumn was off her bed and had the bat in swinging position. She'd had to do this one too many times in her short life. Mark put his hands up.

"Ladybug, it's me. I'm not going to hurt you," he said calmly. Autumn shook her head furiously.

"Liar! You lie!" Mark looked at her. She was seriously worried that he would hurt her. He took a deep breath.

"Ladybug, lemme explain." Autumn shook her head.

"No, just get out!" Mark shook his head, he had to be stubborn to get his sincerity through to her. He took a step towards her and Autumn swung the bat. "I said leave!" Mark looked at her surprised he never would have thought that she'd actually swing it. Not his Ladybug, she was too sweet. He needed to get it away from her before she hurt him or herself. Moving as quickly as his ring beaten body would let him he roughly grabbed the bat out of he hands. When he saw the purest form of fear flood through her small body, he lost all feeling in his limbs. He dropped the bat and quickly turned to leave. He didn't want her to see him cry.

**Thanks to all my reviews per usual. Mattaggot, Cena's baby doll, Souless666, and Sonib89. You guys rock! :D **


	5. Chapter 5

Thanks to all my readers!

_Things suck right now. Like a lot. Mark seems down and I can't focus…on anything. I'm screwing up in school, I can't paint worth a darn, and my soccer game is suffering. I didn't even score one goal last game. It was horrible. The whole game I just kept coming up short. It was like I was running in quicksand when everyone else was running on regular grass. It sucks knowing I was letting everyone down. My coach kept yelling at me which only made me play worse. He's threatening to bench me if I can't start focusing and that's just adding to my anxiety. I've got one more shot tomorrow, and if I suck I'm benched. I'm really nervous that he'd actually do it. He's not mean, but he's craves winning, it's his drug I guess. This is all really scary for me. I like starting, and for the first time in my life I've got a whole group of people behind me and it feels awesome. I just can't help but feeling like eventually I'm going to let them down. Me and Hannah are practicing every day after school, but it's not helping. She keeps asking if something's wrong but I can't bring myself to tell her. I guess I my wall is still up. Mark's fault. Correction, Mark's bruises fault. Besides who says she won't blab to the whole world?_

_You know something, life sucks when you could only imagine and dream about what you were missing out on, but life sucks so much more when you had it and lose it. I don't think I can ever fully forgive Mark. I mean those bruises lasted for a week and a half. He's been pretty good about not pushing me to talk to him or even interact. I guess he feels bad, but then again all drunks feel bad and then go right back to drinking. No thank you, he can keep his distance. I'll continue to eat my meals alone and ride my bike to and from school. This has made me stronger I think. I don't cry anymore, well at least not voluntarily. Unfortunately, my nightmares are returning and I wake up either screaming or in a cold sweat every night. I'm just glad Mark hasn't come in and bothered me. That would suck. For some reason though stuff doesn't seem to bother me anymore. I feel sort of numb, I'm to the point where I don't care about virtually anything. Virtually being the key word. Whatever._

Mark was lying on his bed in the pitch black just thinking. He'd obviously hurt the kid beyond belief. She hadn't spoken more than three words to him since it'd happened. He thought her evil glares and disgusted looks would fade with time, but they were constant. Mark knew this was a bad idea, he never should have agreed to help Sammy. Look at his whole life, he'd screwed up every person he'd ever loved. Every single one. Maybe he should call Sammy, he didn't want to hurt the kid, but he'd clearly already done that. Maybe she could find him another family. He hadn't called Sammy at first because he thought the kid would get over it and they'd move on, but it just wasn't happening. Mark heard an ear piercing scream and sat up straight. He fumbled with the light and ran then he heard it again. Autumn? He ran as fast as he could down the hallway and flung her door open. Sure enough he found her flailing violently under the covers.

"Leave me alone!" Mark watched her flail and then moved across the room and pulled her out from under the covers. Immediately upon being woken up, she burst into tears. He pulled her close to his chest and rubbed her back soothingly. He really didn't know what to do, but he couldn't just leave her there in obvious fear. Autumn's was crying hard into his chest. He couldn't help but to pray that he wasn't the cause of her nightmare. That would be just too much.

Autumn sat there sobbing into Mark's chest disgusted with herself. Even after all these years she still couldn't shake those stupid nightmares. She felt stupid crying into his chest. The tears should stop, but as usual they didn't. No matter how hard she tried they just wouldn't stop. Mark kept rubbing her back and saying 'it's alright' but it didn't seem so to her, nothing was 'alright'. She really should tell him to back off, but she couldn't bring herself to do it, there was something about his nature that made her feel safe. She guessed subconsciously that she was longing to feel secure. A longing she'd known all too well in her life.

Mark watched her cry, he really couldn't deal with it if she decided to walk out of his life. In just their short time together she'd wormed her way into his heart. He was determined to be a better person if she'd just give him a chance. That's all he needed just one chance. One. He tightened his grip around her body and kept rubbing her back. She tensed at first and then relaxed. Soon her breathing went back to regular and Mark continued to rub her back. Autumn started to get tired again. She really hadn't slept well in about a month or so, but for some reason sleep was starting to overtake her easily. Mark noticed her tensing back up, he didn't want to push her. Slowly he released her and stood up. He picked up her blanket of the floor and spread it out over the bed again. Then he opened it and motioned for her to get under the covers. Autumn looked at him suspiciously and then climbed in she was really too tired to fight. Mark watched her climb into her bed groggily and replaced the covers over her body. Mark knelt down to her and kissed her forehead. "Have better dreams, Ladybug." Autumn felt turmoil that was hazed by lack of sleep. She yawned. Mark turned and headed towards the door. He hoped that was a start. "If you need me just holler." Mark headed down the hall to his room feelings conflicted. It was his fault that she was so scared. She'd never had a nightmare like that before the incident. He shook his head. His selfishness had driven her to that.

"Mark!" He stopped dead in his tracks and turned to walk towards Autumn's room. He reopened the door and stared at her.

"Yes Ladybug?" Autumn gave a soft smile.

"I was just checking." Mark rolled his eyes.

"Night Ladybug," he said as he walked out the door with a smile on his face. Hopefully he'd started the journey to get his baby back. That night for the first time in a long time both of them slept peacefully.

Mark rolled over to birds chirping and smiled. Talk about cliché. He shook his head and smiled. He hoped that would be an example of how the rest of the day would go. He would do everything in his power today to get her to listen and know that he would NEVER do such a thing ever again. He hopped into the shower, his baby had a soccer game today.

Autumn was sitting on her bed. Last night kept replaying in her mind. That dream was so real and yet so scary. It was like she was there all over again. Even though she had a peaceful rest of the night, that one vivid dream had chilled her to the bone. No matter how hard she tried she couldn't focus on the good part of last night, but that stupid dream. It was so frustrating not to be able to control her emotions. She sighed, time to get dressed for soccer.

Mark was walking around the kitchen getting some oranges, fruit snacks, and sandwiches together for a picnic he was planning after the game. He needed to reconnect with her. It had always worked with Allie, maybe it'd work for Autumn. He smiled when he thought of her name. She really had brought some needed freshness into his once stale lifestyle. Autumn walked into kitchen not feeling too happy. She couldn't focus still and her mind was swimming, this wouldn't make her game any better. And If it couldn't get worse she was feeling sick. She sighed. Mark glanced back at her as she sat down at the counter. "Would you like some fruit?" Autumn looked up at him and seemed to be looking right through him. She nodded and sighed. Mark brought her the fruit and watched her eat it in a daze. She was listening to music and had a magazine in front of her flipping through it. She seemed in such turmoil and there wasn't a thing he could do about it. He shook his head. "Autumn, baby it's time to go." Autumn didn't have any music playing and heard him the first time, she just wanted to see what'd he'd do if she didn't answer. Mark sighed, he really thought they were making progress. He closed the cooler and walked towards her. "Sweetie, it's time to go." Autumn looked up like it was the first time she heard him and nodded. Mark smiled and grabbed her bag off the floor. She shook her head, he was being a little too nice to her.

As usual they were in their own separate worlds in the truck. Mark with his thoughts and Autumn with hers. She was listening to music trying as hard as she could to get her head focused on the game, but she just couldn't. Her nerves were so bad that she was on the verge of vomiting, and to top it all off Mark was weaseling his way back into her trust. This was too much for a twelve year old to handle. Way too much.

Mark watched her getting paler and they got closer to the field. He wanted to help her, but he didn't know what to say or how to say it. He pulled the truck into a spot and watched her slowly climb out of the truck. Clearly looking sick. He shook his head. "I'll see you on the field after the game?" There was obvious curiousness in her voice. Mark smiled down at her. She still needed him. He nodded and she turned away.

"Autumn." She sighed and turned around. She raised her eyebrow. Mark walked closer to her and knelt down. He placed his hand on her forehead then to her cheek. She was a bit warm. "Sweetie, are you feeling ok?" Autumn took a deep breath and nodded. She didn't need to tell him about what the coach had said or that her stomach was hurting or that she was hot and cold all at the same time. Autumn turned to walk away again, but Mark gently turned her around. He was now standing and pushed her body close to his. "Win or lose, I still love you." Autumn looked up at him in awe. It seemed with those words he'd given her a new source of energy. She smiled at him and gave him a quick squeeze. Mark smiled at her as she ran off. Maybe this day could turn out to be a good one after all.

Autumn was killing it. She was slicing and scoring like she did months ago when she first started playing. She was back on top of the world and loving it. Her teammates were excited and getting behind her and everything was falling into place. She would sometimes take a quick glance towards the stands where she saw Mark smiling ear to ear. He'd changed his shirt apparently when she wasn't looking and had put on a homemade shirt that said 'my daughter is #11'. All the team moms were wearing theirs and she would never have imagined that he'd actually wear one. She couldn't help but to smile. Halftime was much better than she'd imagined. Her coach wasn't yelling at her for once and all seemed well. She was back to her usual Iggyness and making everyone laugh.

Mark was really enjoying the game. He enjoyed seeing her happy even if it meant wearing the God awful shirt. She was smiling and having a good time like she used to. That was well until the middle of the second half. Then she seemed to slow down and lose her edge. She usually didn't tire, so he wondered what was wrong. He couldn't be sure from far away, but she seemed to be getting paler. He felt so badly for her when the game ended and they'd lost by one goal. She'd had a chance to tie it but slipped at the last second. He knew it hurt her because she stayed on the field while everyone else left. He headed down to the water cooler to meet her.

Autumn felt like crap, she had done so well that is until her team needed her the most. She had her head down as she walked back toward the bench. Her stomach was really hurting and she felt like puking. She reached for the cup by the cooler but felt her arm being grabbed and her body being spun around. Not again, she thought. She turned to be face to face with Kurt the coach. "What's wrong with you?" Autumn was too sick to care what he thought. "You let the whole team down. Why can't you get your head in the game?" Autumn looked up into his angry eyes. She shook her head and glared at him. Jerk. "Maybe a week on the bench will help you focus." At this point Autumn could care less, she was feeling really badly now. She went to open her mouth, but someone spoke before she could.

"She'll do no such thing!" Autumn looked up at Mark with as much surprise as everyone else. He wasn't one of those parents who got overly involved with their kids sporting activities. He lived by the philosophy of you do your job and I'll do mine. Kurt shook him off.

"This is my team Mark, back off." Mark rolled his eyes, winning is one thing, but putting down a twelve year old girl is another.

"Look at her, she gave you everything she had. You can't be upset at that. If anything maybe you should sit out a week and cool off." Kurt narrowed his eyes and walked away. Autumn and Hannah exchanged glances. For once Hannah had a kind word for Mark.

"Good job Big Guy." Mark smiled, he hadn't seen Hannah in a while. Hannah looked at Autumn. "Iggy, we're gonna hit the mall wanna come?" Autumn wanted to but was feeling so badly that she just wanted to go home. She shook her head.

"Naw, thanks though." Hannah narrowed her eyes.

"You sure?" Autumn nodded definitely.

"Yeah I'll call you later." Hannah shrugged and went to catch up with the rest of the team. Mark looked down at Autumn.

"Baby are you ok?" She was pale and starting to shiver. He felt her face she was burning up. Autumn shook her head. "Come on." He reached for her hand.

"Why?" Mark looked down at her stoically.

"We're going to the hospital." Autumn shook her head violently. At least they shared a hate of all things medical.

"No, I hate hospitals, I'm fine really." Mark smiled that was the most she'd said to him in almost two months. Still though he wasn't taking no for an answer.

"Not a question. Let's go." Autumn shook her head with fear. Hospitals were bad places.

"No please, I-I'm fine." She had the sudden urge to hurl but brushed it off. Mark shook his head.

"You walk or I'll carry you either way." Autumn shook her head and started tried to run, but her legs wouldn't move. Before she knew what was happening she slunk into the ground eyes rolling into the back of her head.

**Oh my. Thanks for the reviews!** **Mattaggot, Cena's baby doll, Souless666, and Sonib89.**

**Oh shouts out to Batista's wife for the dope messages!**


	6. Chapter 6

Mark chewed his nails nervously. Autumn had passed out at the soccer field and they'd call an ambulance. He hated those things, he couldn't fit and it freaked him out to watch his baby be hooked up to a breathing machine. He was kicking himself. If he hadn't have done that crap to her months ago this wouldn't have happened. This was his fault. His and no one else's. He couldn't sit still. He was in the waiting room hoping that someone would tell him what was wrong with his child.

"Family of Autumn Lewis?" Mark jumped up.

"That's me I'm her father. What's wrong?" He was bracing himself for the worst. He held his breath as the young doctor with blonde hair ushered him into the small room where Autumn was.

"Well, she has a mild case of salmonella poisoning and exhaustion but she should be fine in a few days. We're giving her some antibiotics to fight the infection and some IV fluids to help with her exhaustion."

"Do you know if she at some raw meat or bad eggs?" Mark shook his head. She didn't eat with him, but he made her food and set it out for her every night but he had no idea what she was doing for after school snacks or if she even at the dinner. He shook his head. The doctor shrugged. "Well just monitor her eating habits and keep a close eye on her for the next few weeks." Mark nodded, guilt was rapidly overtaking him.

"Yeah, I'll do that." Mark's head dropped, he knew it was his fault. He never should have let her play today. She was clearly sick. The doctor noticed his worrying.

"This happens to the best of us. All we can do is learn from it. She'll be fine after she sleeps for a few hours. Make sure she takes her antibiotics twice a day for a week or so and she'll be as good as new." Mark nodded.

"Thanks Doc." The young doctor smiled and left the small room. Mark walked over and grabbed Autumn's hand. She was sleeping peacefully, but he had this overwhelming urge to let her know that he was there and she was safe. He sat there staring at her for a long time.

A few hours later a nurse came in. She smiled at the scene. Mark was leaning back in a chair sound asleep holding Autumn's hand. It was the sweetest thing. She quietly walked towards him and gently nudged him. Mark's eyes fluttered open. He looked around and rubbed his eyes with his free hand.

"What time is it?" The nurse smiled at him.

"Just after six. I just talked to the doctor and you can take her home now." Mark nodded. "Would you like me to get you a wheelchair for her?" Mark shook his head.

"No I'll carry her." The nurse smiled at him.

"You're a good father." Mark shook his head.

"No I'm not, but she's a great daughter." He paused, "that little girl is my world." Gently he pulled Autumn into his arms and proceeded to carry her out to the truck. He walked briskly wanting to get out of the hospital and fast as possible. Places like that had always given him the willies. He sighed with relief as he got her outside into fresh air. He'd really needed that. He set her in the front seat and buckled her in. He hoped one day she'd really know his love for her.

Autumn sat in his front seat of the truck thinking. She had only been up for about ten minutes and was getting groggy again, but she'd heard what Mark had said to the nurse. It made her feel good that he'd talked about her like that thinking she was asleep. Maybe he did deserve a second chance. After all he'd held her hand the whole ride to the hospital and while she had slept. She knew because her hand had sweat on it from his ever sweaty palms. She took a deep breath before sleep overtook her again.

Mark finally pulled into the front of their house. The hospital was upwards to an hour away from where they lived and he was exhausted. He'd put her to bed and then pass out himself. This day had been mentally draining to say the least. Slowly he hopped out of the truck and walked over to the passenger side. He unbuckled her seatbelt and smiled. It felt good to have her in his arms, where he'd know that she'd always be safe. He closed the door with his hip and somehow managed to open the door and disarm the alarm while still holding Autumn. Slowly he walked up the stairs and opened the door to her room.

"Daddy, can I sleep with you tonight?" It was mumbled and soft, but Mark definitely heard it. Mark looked around incredulously. Was she dreaming? Autumn was still groggy but somewhat coherent. She opened one eye and was batting it slowly in a tired manner. "Please, I don't want to sleep alone." Mark nodded and kissed her forehead. She closed her eye and passed back out.

"Sure thing, Ladybug." Mark smiled and set her down on the opposite side of the bed. He pulled off that wretched shirt and then his shoes and lay down next to her making sure that she was comfortable. He looked at her sleeping. It was bittersweet. It's where Allie used to sleep and she was his heart in so many ways, but now it's where Autumn was asleep and she was slowly capturing his heart. Now there was really no turning back, he was a daddy again.


	7. Chapter 7

Mark groggily woke up to find Autumn's head resting on his chest near his armpit. When did that happen? He smiled, she seemed to really be ready to move past what had happened. He knew that he'd have to talk about it and clear the air. He didn't want to bother her so he just sat there with her head resting on his chest. The peace and quiet was calming to his nerves. After yesterday's scare he really needed some way to relax. He sat there for a while happy that she trusted him again. He got an idea, but it'd only work for he acted quickly. Gently he adjusted Autumn's head so that she was lying on the bed with her head against a pillow. Then Mark slowly walked into the bathroom. He needed to make a phone call.

Autumn woke up to Mark sitting at the foot of the large bed staring at the TV. She slowly adjusted her body and yawned. Mark turned and smiled at her. "Morning Ladybug." Autumn gave him a soft smile.

"What time is it?" Mark looked at his watch.

"Just after ten. How'd you sleep?" Autumn shrugged and yawned.

"Ok, I guess. No nightmares." Mark smiled softly at her. He got up and walked towards the head of the bed and sat down next to her. He wrapped his arm around her shoulder and pulled her close to his chest.

"I'm really sorry about what happened." He felt Autumn stiffen. He squeezed her closer to his chest. "I know my word doesn't mean much to you, but I can't say how much I wish that had never happened." Autumn was looking at her hands. Mark grabbed her hand in his. "I imagine that words don't mean much to you, so I'll just continue to show you how much you mean to me, ok?" Autumn looked into his eyes. She saw sincerity and nodded. "Can I ask you a question?" Autumn looked at him curiously. "What'd you eat that gave you salmonella?" Autumn got an embarrassed look on her face and attempted to scoot away from Mark. "Come on now, Ladybug what was it?" Autumn took a deep breath it was a dumb idea anyway.

"Uh, well I was trying to fry chicken but I couldn't get the grease to light so I cooked it in the microwave." Mark made a noise in his throat trying to stifle the chuckle that wanted to emerge from his throat. Autumn grunted. "Dumb I know." Mark shook his head and smiled. He kissed the top of her head.

"It's ok, we all make mistakes, but how about you let me do the cooking from here on out, ok?" Autumn gave him a soft smile.

"Ok." Mark nodded and stood up.

"Alright, you need to go and get dressed. I've got a lot planned for today." Autumn stood up.

"What is it?" Mark shook his head and gently nudged her towards the door.

"It's a secret." Autumn frowned and walked out of the room. Mark chuckled to himself and headed off to make a light breakfast for them. He was practically walking on sunshine. He couldn't be in a better mood if he'd tried. He started whistling to himself.

Autumn was listening to music while she went through her closet to find something to wear. Mark hadn't really been specific with where they were going and she wondered if she should ask. She shrugged better safe than sorry. The scent of bacon filled her nose as she walked down the stairs. He saw Mark in the kitchen whistling to himself. She entered the room.

"Uh Mark, what should I wear?" Mark's heart lurched in his chest. He guessed 'daddy' was too good to be true or was it? Maybe he could have a little fun with her.

"Who?" Autumn stopped mid-sentence. She saw him turn around and smile at her. She returned the smile.

"Daddy Warbucks?" Mark shook his head and walked towards her still smiling, Autumn backed away giggling.

"Nope."

"Uh Mr. Callaway?" Mark was right next to her now and started tickling her. Autumn fell into a fit of giggles while trying to squirm away.

"Who?" Autumn shook her head but kept laughing. "Who am i?"

"The Undertaker!" Mark laughed at her creativity and shook his head while intensifying the tickling.

"Who?" Autumn couldn't take it anymore.

"Ok alright I get it." Mark stopped and looked down at her smiling.

"Oh?" Autumn took a deep breath and nodded.

"Yep you're the American Bad—" Before she could get the word out Mark had her back down and tickling her again. "Fine! Fine, you're Daddy." Mark laughed.

"What say it again?"

"Daddy." She was still giggling and it came out between gasps for air.

"One more time, I just can't seem to quite hear you."

"Daddy!" She yelled. Mark nodded at her and set her on her feet.

"And don't you forget it." Autumn was still breathing hard and shook her head.

"Well now that's out of the way, what should I wear?" Mark rolled his eyes, it was just like a woman to worry about clothes.

"Just put on some jeans. I don't care as long as you're comfortable so I don't have to hear you complaining." Autumn stuck her tongue out at him and turned to walk back up the stairs.

"And it better not be boring either!" Mark laughed. There was her bubbliness that he had craved for so long.

Autumn sat in the passenger seat of the truck listening to her mp3 player. She sighed as she realized that she had listened to _every _stinking song on her mp3 player. Frustrated she took the headphones off of her head. Mark glanced over at her. "What's wrong?" She shrugged, they were just starting to get back to normal. No need to bring money into the equation. A sigh escaped from her mouth. She really was tired of not ever having any cash to be able to buy stuff with. Hannah usually paid, but she hated being dependent on people. She started fidgeting with her thumbs, maybe Mark would understand.

"Dad?" Mark smiled at the word.

"Yes?" Autumn took a deep breath.

"Um, can I have an allowance?" Mark's eyebrows furrowed causing Autumn to grow concerned. "Uh never mind. It's ok, sorry I asked." Mark sighed, he really would have to earn her trust back. He reached across the truck and grabbed her hand.

"Sure you can Ladybug, I should have thought about that a while ago, I'm sorry." Autumn let out her breath. "So how much do you think you'll need?" Autumn shrugged, she hadn't really thought of that, she honestly didn't think he'd go for it. Now the question was how much was too much, maybe he'd get upset if she said too much. She felt her stomach turning into knots with nervousness. Mark saw her confusion and decided to help her out. "How about ten dollars a week?" Autumn's eyes grew huge.

"Um, would more be ok?" Mark sighed, she was still really skittish around him.

"How much more?"

"Maybe twenty?" Mark's eyes narrowed, that seemed a lot for a girl who could only go out on weekends.

"Maybe, how about this? Fifteen dollars a week only if you do all your homework and chores." Autumn sighed.

"What happens if I don't?" Mark chuckled.

"Well then you not only won't get any allowance that week, but you'd be grounded for the weekend too." Autumn sighed there was his fairness again.

"Ok, but if I do all my homework and all my chores for the whole month, at the end you give me an extra twenty dollars." Mark thought about it as he drove down the road.

"Make it ten and we have a deal." Autumn frowned that he kept dropping the numbers but nodded. Something was better than nothing. Mark tousled her hair earning a hand slap from Autumn.

"Stay outta my hair." Mark smiled, things were returning to normal, well their normal. Slowly, but they were coming. Autumn took a deep breath, Mark had only disappointed her that one time, other than that he was amazing. Maybe, she should try to love him like he'd never hurt her. She had read a quote the other day and fell in love in with it. "Love like you've never been hurt…" For some reason it really struck a chord with her. She decided what she really needed to do was to forgive him, but she definitely would talk to him about never drinking again. If they were going to be a family a _real_ family, he'd have to promise her that he'd never drink again. She just couldn't deal with that.

Mark glanced at her and smiled, they'd been on the road for a while and he was feeling that she was getting restless. "You ok, Ladybug?" She nodded.

"Daddy, can we talk?" The word still made Mark smile, he nodded. "Um, I don't like it when you drink." Mark took a deep breath and looked at her. Autumn fidgeted with her hands. "I'd like it if you didn't drink anymore." Mark didn't need to contemplate it, it was a done deal.

"That's a good idea." Autumn didn't think it'd be that easy. She looked at him.

"Really?" Mark nodded.

"Yup, I only did it to forget my pain, but it usually made me to cause pain that I never meant to. I won't touch another drop."

"Promise?" Autumn was holding his breath, maybe he'd get upset for asking him to promise.

"Promise." Autumn smiled at him.

"Thanks Daddy."

"Ladybug, I know this might take a while, but do you forgive me?" He was holding his breath. Autumn thought about it, he'd been trying to get back into her good graces for months. _Love like you've never been hurt. _Autumn slowly nodded.

"Sure thing." Mark smiled, he hadn't realized just how much it meant to him that she forgave him. It was like a weight was lifted off his shoulders. He felt like a young man again. He realized now more than ever that he never do anything to hurt her ever again. "Where are we going?" Mark grinned at her.

"To the fair." Autumn gasped, she had never been to an actual fair.

"Really?" Mark nodded. Autumn started bouncing in her seat excitedly.

It was almost dusk and Mark was holding Autumn's hand as they readied to circle around the fair one last time. So far they'd had a great day. Mark and Autumn had ridden almost all of the rides, well that is the ones that Mark could fit on. She was having one of the best days of her life. Mark was smiling from ear to ear with pleasure. "Daddy, can I have cotton candy?" Mark looked down at her. He was skeptical she'd already eaten way more than enough junk. Between the chili cheese dogs, French fries, caramel apple, funnel cake, and blueberry slushie he wondered how her stomach wasn't hurting already. He did want to treat her today, but there was a fine line between treating and spoiling. He shook his head.

"No, you've eaten enough junk today." Autumn was upset, she just wanted to try it.

"Please?" Mark looked toward the sky, she was begging. It took everything he had to turn her down. Autumn kicked the dirt underneath her feet. She pulled her hand out of his and crossed her arms over her chest. Mark shook his head, childish move. He shouldn't laugh but he couldn't help himself it was kinda funny.

Mark's patience was wearing thin. For the last half hour she'd been in pout mode and was giving him short succinct answers. He was trying not to let her bad attitude ruin their great day, but it was becoming harder and harder. He sighed. "Mark!" Mark turned around and noticed Dave Batista walking towards him. Mark shook his head and smiled.

"Hey Dave." Dave looked down at the little girl clearly pouting and chuckled.

"Is this Autumn?" Mark nodded. "What'd you do to her?" Mark rolled his eyes.

"She's upset because I wouldn't let her get cotton candy." Dave laughed.

"Kids'll do that." Mark frowned.

"She needs to learn to act her age." That made Autumn frown and she looked at him angrily. Mark ignored the look. "So what are you doing here?" Dave shrugged.

"My girlfriend brought her kids, so I figured I'd accompany them. No big deal." Mark smiled, Dave always was a family man. "Hey, I'm going to go and get them and I'll be right back." Mark nodded and looked down at Autumn. He gave her a soft smile and she returned it with a scowl.

"You know you're really too old to be pouting."

"Then I'm too old for you to tell me what I can eat." Mark cut her a look. He should be glad that she was feeling comfortable enough to voice her opinion but he wasn't gonna let her follow Hannah's mouthy disrespectful lead.

"Hey you reign in that attitude," he said sternly. Autumn only shook her head. Dave returned with a lovely blonde and two small children.

"Mark this is my girlfriend Pam, and this is her two kids Sara and Daniel." Autumn looked at the two kids and then Dave and the woman and turned her gaze elsewhere. Mark was really getting irritated.

"So Autumn how are you doing?" Dave was looking down at her. She shrugged.

"I'd be better if I had cotton candy." Mark sighed this was a bit embarrassing. He grunted. Autumn looked at him. "Well it's been great!" She said with obvious sarcasm. Mark shook his head, he couldn't deal with this anymore.

"It was great seeing you Dave and it was nice to meet y'all." Mark put his hand on Autumn's back and ushered her toward the parking lot. Autumn knew by the force he was using that he wasn't happy, she shrugged. Mark was grunting, he guessed it was a necessity of teenagedom to revert to preschool. He was so frustrated, it's like they take two step forwards and six steps backwards. He power unlocked the doors and he went to the drivers' side of the truck. He sighed and started tapping his foot, he was so angry. He took a deep breath, he couldn't yell at her. Autumn was fidgeting with her hands, clearly he was angry with her. He couldn't hit her in a truck could he?

"I just wanted cotton candy," she mumbled. Mark whipped his head towards her.

"What?" It was more like growl than a yell.

"I just wanted cotton candy, that's all. It's not like I was going to kill someone." Mark shook his head, he was thinking of killing. He took a deep breath and pinched the bridge of his nose, he had to speak to her in a calm tone.

"Autumn, do you know how embarrassing that was?" She looked at him and shrugged.

"No, not really." Mark sighed, there was so much she didn't know.

"When you do stuff like that, you make me look like a bad parent." Autumn couldn't seem to find any sympathy for him. He looked like a bad parent? So what? She'd had bad parents her whole life. Mark sighed.

"Do you love me?" That caught Autumn off guard, she hesitated. "Do you?" Mark looked at her.

"I-I don't really know what love is. I guess so, well maybe." Mark looked at her, most people were born knowing how to love, but she had to learn. He sighed, he had to be the one to teach her. He reached for her hand.

"Well I know that I love you. Do you know what that means?" Autumn looked at him. "That means I'm going to love you through the good, the bad, and the ugly. Most of all it's my job to make sure that you grow up to be a responsible adult who understand the difference between right and wrong." Autumn's gaze dropped towards her hands. She had let her own emotions take over and be better than anyone else's. That was wrong.

"I'm sorry." Mark sighed, she was a really good kid just a little without guidance. He'd be there to provide plenty of that.

"I'm sure you are, but you're still going to be punished." Autumn gulped.

"A-are you going to hit me?" Mark felt his heart tighten and shook his head violently.

"No, look at me, I won't ever hit you again. I swear it. Ok?" Autumn nodded with a smile. "But I am going to ground you." Autumn sighed, but it was better than other stuff that had happened to her before.

"For how long?" Mark smiled.

"A week."

"What?" Mark laughed.

"A week, and if you wanna complain about it I can make it longer." Autumn lowered her head.

"Fine." Mark smiled at her, maybe it wouldn't be so hard to parent a teen after all.

The whole ride home was peaceful. Autumn was on her best behavior hoping that Mark would lessen her punishment, but no such luck. He knew exactly what she was up to asking to pump the gas for him and offering to clean the inside of his truck. He remained amused at her antics regardless of her constant attempts to get off the hook, but he wasn't budging. It was fun though just watching her try to squirm out of punishment. Mark shook his head. She slept for most of the way home until the about the five minute mark from their house. "Daddy?" Mark looked at her she was so flipping cute.

"Yes Ladybug."

"Um, I'm sorry again." Mark nodded.

"I know, but you're still going to be punished." Autumn's smile faded, this would suck. They finally pulled up to the house. She followed Mark into the house and then headed off into the direction of the movie room. She was going to catch a few late night movies, before she had to be in bed in a few hours. "Autumn." She turned around. "Where are you going?" She shrugged.

"To watch movies. I don't have to be in bed for another few hours," she said glancing at the clock on her cell phone. The last sentence came out whinier than she'd intended, but oh well it got her point across. Mark laughed.

"The only place you're going is to your room, to the shower, and then to bed." Autumn gave him an incredulous look.

"What? Why? I did all my homework."

"Because you're grounded."

"But I got to watch TV last time."

"That was partial grounding this is full grounding. No TV, no computer, no mp3 player, and in bed by ten." Autumn was distraught.

"But…" Was all she could manage before Mark shook his head at her.

"No buts, now go." Autumn sighed and headed up the stairs. Who knew having parents could suck this bad? She stomped all the way up the stairs. "Knock it off!" Autumn sighed, he was so freakin' strict! Mark chuckled at her.

Autumn was lying on her bed sulking in her night clothes. She sighed, it was her own fault. She knew she was being a brat when she did it, but she didn't think he'd react like this. She heard her door open. "Hi." Mark smiled at her and sat down on her bed. He motioned for her to sit next to him. She did so and he wrapped his arm around her. He didn't say anything, they just sat there quietly for a long time. No words needed to be said, both knew what was happening. They were building a lifelong connection, by just enjoying each other's presence. It was eerie and few men could understand it, but it made perfect sense to them. After a while Mark kissed the top of her head and motioned for her to get in bed. Autumn was still pouting. "Alright sleep well Ladybug." Mark headed out the room.

"Night Dad," Autumn said just before she turned over. Mark smiled at her. It was a sure thing now…there was no turning back. She was his, and he was hers. Life was good.

**Thanks for the reviews, I love your take on the chapters. **

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	8. Chapter 8

_Two nights ago sucked, like tremendously. First I couldn't' sleep and then when I did I had a nightmare that ended all nightmares. It was so scary. It was like I could feel his breath on my face. It was marred with alcohol and cigarettes. It kept cutting to various scenes of torture. Needless to say I woke up screaming in Mark's arms…again. He's been really good about not pushing me about what my dreams are about, but it's still embarrassing. I wish there was a way to get these stupid dreams to stop. Sammy always told me they'd stop once I got over what was plaguing me, but I guess I'm not over it, yet. Whatever, anyway let's get into my point. _

_So yesterday, Tuesday, I had a really bad night. I couldn't sleep and when I did I was having torturous nightmares. Awesome, I know. So I told Mark I was tired at breakfast, but he made me go to school anyway. Which wasn't too bad because he's back to dropping me off so I got some sleep in the car, but not much. After he did his whole 'gimme a hug' ritual, I locked my bike up and went into class. Of course, Eliza started to piss me off first thing. I tried my hardest not to lose it, but I was working on no sleep plus I sorta let a curse word slip at Mark at dinner the other night, so I got two days of punishment. Needless to say, my mood wasn't the greatest. So when she started to 'make fun of me' I lost it. Before I knew what happened she had a black eye and I was in the dean's office. I'll spare you the gruesome details of Mark's reaction and inform you that I have to work every day afterschool at the gym cleaning toilets for two months. Gross. _

Mark sighed. He and Autumn were getting along so well in so many ways, but she was having so many issues. It seemed like every time he turned around she was doing something sneaky or mouthing off. He knew teenagers could be difficult, but he wasn't at all prepared for this. For the most part things were really good between them, but her nightmares scared him as much as they scared her. She'd never tell him what was so scary and woke up screaming at least three times a week. He was at his wits end about how to help her. He took a deep breath and dialed a number.

"Samantha Cook speaking, how may I help you?" Mark smiled at her voice.

"Hey Sammy it's Mark." Sammy smiled.

"Hey how are things with Autumn, is she over the salmonella?"

"Yeah she is, um. I was wondering could you recommend some child psychologists?" Sammy's breath caught in her throat, would he send her back if he knew the extent to her trauma?

"Uh sure. Is she having problems?" Mark heard the sketchiness in her voice, his eyes narrowed she was hiding something.

"What are you hiding from me, Sammy?" Sammy panicked.

"Nothing, why would you say that?" Mark grunted angrily.

"Don't lie to me. She's staying with me I gotta right to know." Sammy sighed, he had a point.

"Mark are you alone?" Mark glanced at the closed door.

"Yeah, I am. Say what you need to." Sammy sighed.

"Autumn is a very special child. She's been through a lot." Mark nodded. "Well she's strong and caring, and loving."

"Get to the point," he said gruffly. Sammy sighed again.

"She's been abused a lot, Mark. Mostly by her mother's boyfriend. We don't know his name, but we have some idea of the torture that he put her through. If she was bad he might lock her in a closet for a couple hours or even a couple of days. Usually with no food or water or a place to relieve herself. Sometimes, he'd beat her with a TV antenna. Sometimes he'd beat her with a belt or shove her into a wall or throw her down a flight of stairs. If it was evil, he did it." Mark felt himself growing with anger. "She never knew what was going to happen one day to the next." Mark sighed, that's why she was so schedule oriented, it helped her be in control. "It was Hell, Mark, when they found her she had been in a closet for days. She didn't' talk, cried anytime someone would touch her, and couldn't sleep through the night."

"Where was her mother?"

"Her mom was no help and was usually drunk or high. Both of them were, most of the time they were drinking and drugging and used torture as recreation. Sadly though, that's only some of it, there's things she still won't even talk about. " Mark sighed, he hadn't known that at all. He really wished someone would have told him that before he got involved.

"That's real nice. Did you not think that I should know this before I agreed? My God, what were you thinking?" Sammy got defensive.

"I was thinking that a little girl needed a family and forgive me if I thought you needed love." Mark didn't like the tone in her voice.

"Well don't you think it was important that I know that I got a damaged kid? If I had known all of this I would have never-" He heard a gasp and looked up. Autumn was staring at him holding a broom with glassy eyes. "Baby…" Autumn shook her head and ran from the room. Mark cursed he did it again. She hung up the phone and chased after her. "Autumn?" She kept running. Mark watched her run out of the building and down the street. He yelled at Mitch to chase her down, he knew he couldn't catch her with his bad knees. He hopped into his truck and followed them down the road. Autumn was crying full force. She knew if she told him he'd leave her, now he was going to anyway. Damaged? That's all she'd been known for her entire life. **DAMAGED.** It wasn't her fault, bad people had done that to her. Damaged? The words cut her deep into her soul, he thought she was damaged. She felt arms grab her.

"Leave me alone!" Mitch shook his head. She started to kick and punch but when Mitch wouldn't let her go she just started to cry into his chest. Mitch shook his head, Mark was definitely a work in progress. Mark pulled up to the curb a few moments after Autumn started crying into Mitch's shirt. He felt like a jerk. He wanted to get back at Sammy, not hurt the kid. He motioned for Mitch to back away. Autumn looked up at him and then frowned. She wiped her face with the back of her hand and sat on the curb. Mark came and sat next to her. Mitch mouthed to Mark that he'd go back to the gym, Mark nodded appreciatively. They sat in silence for a while, Mark had learned that if you gave her time to process her thoughts, she'd be easier to deal with. Finally, after about twenty minutes he spoke.

"I didn't mean to hurt you." Autumn threw a rock into the street.

"Well you did." Mark sighed and went to wrap his arm around her, she stopped his hand and shook her head. "Don't touch me." Mark knew he should be happy that she wasn't totally retreating into herself and going with short cold answers, but her sheer coldness was scaring him, it was like she'd finally given up on him.

"Baby—"

"Don't call me that," she spat.

"Fine, _Autumn_, I didn't mean what I said like it came out." Autumn rolled her eyes, he didn't mean to call her damaged? Yeah, right.

"Sure, you didn't."

"Autumn you know your Daddy has a bad temper. I say things I don't mean."

"You're not my father, old man." Mark sighed, she was trying to hurt him as badly as he'd hurt her.

"Yeah, I am." Autumn shrugged.

"Suit yourself." Mark looked at her with intrigue.

"Now why would you say that?" Autumn shrugged.

"You said it yourself…I'm damaged." She paused getting a calloused hard look on her face. "I know I am, I just with people wouldn't define me by it." Mark sighed, he tried to put his arm around her shoulder again, but was rebuffed. "I thought I told you to keep your freakin' hands offa me!" Mark cut her a look.

"I know you're angry and hurt, but I'm still your father, so cut it with the attitude." Autumn glared at him. He was so confusing, she was damaged goods, but he still wanted to be her father. This was ridiculous. Mark looked at her clearly thinking, he let out a breath. He always seemed to cause her more pain than he'd intended. He gave her a few minutes to gather her thoughts, and then he spoke calmly and profoundly. "You may be damaged, you may have some issues, but that doesn't mean that I'll ever give up on your or stop loving you." Autumn slowly turned her head towards him, was he serious? Mark looked straight into her eyes. "Damaged you were, healed you will be." Autumn looked at him with curious eyes. Mark only smiled and nodded. This time when he went to wrap his arm around her shoulders, she didn't brush him off. She just rested his head on his chest. It seemed no matter where she went or what she did that he'd keep coming back…she liked that.

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	9. Chapter 9

Autumn smiled as she set the table for dinner. It seemed that between the two of them, they could face any obstacle. She was going to surprise him tonight by setting the table for he asked her to do it. Everything needed to be ready for him when he came down. She wanted to keep him happy, considering the note that was tucked into her back pocket. She shrugged, maybe he wouldn't freak out, yeah right. Mark walked downstairs and smiled. He walked over to her and kissed her on the forehead. "Thanks Ladybug." Autumn beamed.

"You're welcome." Mark smiled to himself as he walked over and sat down. They said grace and they started their usual banter. Autumn couldn't help but smile to herself, Mark was turning out to be better than she'd ever imagined. He was still dropping her off, but now he was making sure that they had special weekend once a month for just them, where they did various things, like a picnic or a quick weekend trip to California. Both father and daughter loved it. Mark was especially happy because this weekend would be a celebration. "Dad?" Mark shook the cobwebs off.

"Yes Ladybug?"

"Uh, I asked you question. I think you zoned out on me." Mark smiled at her softly.

"Yeah, I'm sorry I was just thinking about something."

"Wanna share? You always say talk about what's bothering you." Mark rolled his eyes.

"Well I don't know, maybe I don't trust you." Autumn rolled her eyes.

"We're talking about you here, not me Old Man, now spill it."

"Alright, I well I've got these papers here that say something about adoption, but I'm not sure what to do with them." Autumn's fork went limp in her hand and her mouth fell open. Was he serious?

"Uh, um so what does that mean?" Mark smiled, she was dumbfounded.

"Well it means that in about a year or so, you will become Autumn Calaway officially." Autumn smiled.

"Are you sure this is what you want?" Mark looked at her confused. He thought she'd be doing backflips by now.

"Yeah of course. Why would you say that?" Autumn shifted uncomfortably and looked down.

"Well, um I don't know." Mark grunted, a signal of urging on. "You did say I was damaged, and I got all kinds of issues. You really wanna do this forever?" Mark's heart was breaking, did she really feel that badly about herself? He loved her to death, he wanted to her know it. He reached across the table and lifted her chin. Their eyes met. He took a deep breath.

"I don't do things out of haste. If I didn't want to I wouldn't have. "Autumn sighed, people said those things, but when things got tough they'd leave. Mark stood up and pulled her out of her chair. He pulled her close to his chest. "I've never been so sure about anything else, in my entire life. If you'll have me, I'd like to be there for you forever." Autumn pulled back from him. Forever? For some reason she started to get fidgety. Forever was a long time. She loved Mark, well she thought she did. Would things change? Would she have to…before she could finish her thought Mark broke into them. He cupped her face in his large hands. "Baby, I promise, we'll be in this together. You and me. Things may come and people may go, but I'll always be here for you no matter what." Autumn smiled, she was stupid. What wouldn't be great about having Mark as her father permanently?

"How soon?" Mark smiled at her.

"My attorney says about eight to twelve months."

"But I'll be fourteen by then." Mark gave a slight chuckle.

"It doesn't matter, I'll still be here." Autumn smiled and nodded. She gave him a hug.

"Ok Daddy Warbucks." Mark rolled his eyes and motioned for her to sit back down.

"What'd you say to after dinner you and I order a movie and relax with some ice cream?" Autumn looked at Mark like he had two heads. He almost always nixed her ideas of having sweets after they had dinner.

"Seriously? Don't you have Pinks to watch?" Mark smiled, she knew him so well.

"Yeah, and?"

"Well, I mean I have to be in bed in a few hours." Mark smiled.

"Huh? That is true, but I was thinking that maybe you'd like to skip school tomorrow and hang out with the old man, but if you don't want to…" Autumn shook her head.

"No I want to!" Mark smiled at her.

"I thought so." Autumn giggled happily all the way throughout the dinner. She and Mark were finally gonna be a real family. Yay. Mark smiled at her happily, he couldn't believe his fortune. She was gonnna become _his_ little girl.

Midway through the movie, Autumn was completely guilt ridden. She knew she should have given Mark the letter before he'd let her stay up after her bed time. This was dishonest and she knew it. Lying. She hated liars. She sighed. Her head was resting against Mark's shoulder and he had his arm wrapped around her body. She took a deep breath and took the remote off the chair and paused the movie. Mark turned to look at her. "What's wrong Ladybug?" Autumn sighed. She slowly stood up and pulled the note out of her pocket and handed it to Mark. "What's this?" Autumn shrugged and sat back down. Mark grunted. "Autumn." She sighed, this was it, he was going to freak.

"Yes sir?" Mark sighed and turned towards her.

"Why didn't you tell me about this earlier?" Autumn shrugged and looked down. "You didn't' think that I'd like to know about this before I rewarded you?" She shrugged again. Mark took a deep breath. "Do you have anything to say for yourself, because this is inexcusable?" Autumn sighed, if she was going to save herself, she knew she had to speak up.

"Morgan, thought'd it be a good idea to copy math and Spanish homework and sell it to kids who needed help." There it was out, and he was going to kill her.

"Why would you do that?" She shrugged, he was angry. "You know that's stupid and dishonest, right?" She shrugged again. It's better to not answer than to say something dumb. "Autumn, I promise you, if you shrug at me one more time, you're going to regret it. Now, _answer_ me. Why would you do that?" She started to shrug and then thought better of it.

"I don't know, it sounded like a good idea that the time."

"It wasn't was it?"

"No sir," she said scooting back further into the chair with her eyes boring into her kneecaps. Anywhere but his eyes.

"Well you've earned yourself two weeks of full grounding and no soccer." Autumn opened her mouth to protest, but Mark's look of death suggested otherwise. "Now get yourself up to bed and no journaling, got it?" Autumn nodded, tears started to fall from her eyes. She was disgusted with herself. Mark sighed, he got up and walked over to her as she left the room. He wrapped her in a hug. "You just made a mistake." Autumn nodded.

"I know, I just don't like to disappoint you." Mark sighed, this was going to be a long journey.

"Ladybug it's ok. Just take a deep breath and head off to bed. We can talk more in the morning." Autumn nodded. Mark sighed as he watched her leave. It seemed with every passing day she was taking more of his heart. His cellphone started to ring. Who'd call him at his time of the night?

"Hello?"

Mark hung up the phone walked quickly up the stairs and found Autumn opening her journal. She gasped. "Daddy I-?" Mark shook his head.

"Put your shoes and your jacket on, we've gotta go, _**now**_." Autumn sensing the urgency in his voice nodded and did as she was told. As they were practically running down the steps she couldn't hold her curiosity it any longer.

"Daddy, where are we going?"

"To the hospital." Autumn gasped. "Come on baby we might not have much time." He grabbed Autumn's hand, set the alarm and they sped off into the night.

**Sorry for the delay guys…I'm extending the poll deadline. :P Thanks for the reviews…**** Mattaggot, Cena's baby doll, Souless666, SimplyPriceless2012, and Sonib89. YOU guys rock!**


	10. Chapter 10

Autumn was tapping her foot violently on the floor while sitting on Mark's lap. She'd always hated hospitals. Mark had his arms wrapped around her because he was sure that she'd break for the door if she could. He hated these places…nothing good ever came from them. He wanted to bolt himself, but he knew he couldn't. He had to be strong for Autumn. "Stop that tapping, you're making me nervous." Autumn took a deep breath.

"Sorry." She went to chewing on her nails. Mark shook his head, they had more similarities than either of them knew. "Do you think she's ok?" Mark nodded.

"Yeah, Ladybug, I'm sure she is. Sammy's a tough girl." Mark nodded definitively, he'd known her for most of his life and she was one of the strongest people he'd ever known.

"I-I don't know what' I'd do without her, she's all I've ever had." Mark sighed and pulled her closer to his chest.

"It's gonna be alright Ladybug." He kissed her head and started rubbing her back, which coincidentally was something Sammy had told him to do. The two of them sat there nervously for another twenty minutes before the doctor came out.

"Mr. Calaway?" Mark and Autumn both stood up holding their breath. "Hi, I'm Dr. Richardson. Um, Ms. Cook was in very bad condition when we brought her in." He paused glancing at Autumn, he shook his head. "We've managed to stabilize her, but there's a lot of internal bleeding. Honestly, it might be too much to overcome." Autumn's breath caught in her throat…she couldn't be dying. Not Sammy. She backed away into Mark's arms. He knelt down.

"Ssh, it's ok. We can handle this." Autumn nodded and the doctor continued.

"Well, she is stabilized and can have visitors one at a time." He looked at Mark who nodded. "Why don't you go first Sweetie?" Autumn glanced at Mark who was nodding and agreed. The nurse took her to Sammy's room leaving Mark with the doctor.

"Ok, give it to me straight, how bad is it?" The doctor got a sullen look on his face.

"The accident was very bad," he paused. "I don't think she'll make it through the night." Now it was Mark's turn to be caught without words. Sammy? He couldn't believe it.

Autumn walked out of Sammy's room holding back tears. She walked right into Mark's arms and burst into tears. She didn't want Sammy to see her cry, but it was hard. It was hard. Just plain old hard. Mark held her for a while. "Baby, I've gotta go talk to Sammy ok?" Autumn wiped her eyes and nodded. Mark stood and walked into the room. His breath caught in his throat, she was attached to all these wires and looked so fragile. She smiled when she saw him.

"You're looking good." Mark smiled, he didn't know how to respond. "You've done a great job with Autumn, she's really blossoming." He nodded, still unable to speak. Sammy coughed and winced. She took a deep breath "Mark, there's something I have to tell you. I wasn't alone in the car tonight, I had someone with me, well two people actually. Mark it was Autumn's mother." Mark frowned.

"I uh, thought she disappeared." Sammy nodded.

"She did, but she came back four months ago to get clean…and find Autumn." Mark's heart almost stopped.

"Is she um…" Sammy shook her head and held up her hand slightly.

"No, she um passed Mark, the truck hit on her side." Mark knew he shouldn't be happy but he was. She'd caused Autumn so much pain, now she wouldn't be able to do that anymore. "She was going to help us get her boyfriend in jail too, but it turns out he was shot in a gang shooting a few years back." Mark sighed, this bad news just kept sounding better and better to him. "Here's the problem. The other person in the car, was a small boy." Mark's face dropped.

"Is he?" Sammy nodded.

"Autumn's half-brother? Yes." Mark sighed, he had thousands of emotions running through his body. "Look, I know it's a lot to ask, but could you make sure he finds a good family? It doesn't have to be with you, but somewhere where he can find love and affection." Mark noticed her fading, he walked closer to her bed and grabbed her hand. He got choked up, when he found her hands cold to his grasp. "Please, it's all I ask." Mark gave her a soft smile through tears.

"I still owe you one, right?" Sammy chuckled a bit and winced again.

"That you do." Her eyes started to slow. "I'm going to take a nap now, ok?" Mark nodded and kissed her forehead. "Mark?"

"Yes?"

"Please take care of Autumn, she's gonna need you more now that I'm gone."

"Sammy, you're not going anywhere." She laughed slightly.

"Yeah, I am. I can feel it, Mark." She coughed, "Just promise me that you'll take care of her." Mark felt a tear run down his cheek and he nodded. "Tell her I love her?" Mark closed his eyes and felt tears pouring out of his eyes.

"I will." Sammy smiled at him. He felt her hand go limp in his grasp.

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	11. Chapter 11

_Is it bad that I'm jealous of a six year old? I know I shouldn't be, but he's stealing Mark. Sigh, Mark and Trian were spending all their time together. Mark's taking his final promise to Sammy seriously and looking for a family for him. I feel like a serious jerk, being upset about having my younger brother here and hating his presence. I'm feeling some stuff that I've never felt before….jealousy. Yes, I'm jealous of a six year old and I feel like crap because of it. Mark is busy trying to get everything set up for him with his social worker. Sadly, I'm sure Mark wants him to stay, they've been doing everything together. Sit and watch Pinks and play football in the front yard. I asked Mark to help me with my homework the other day and he was busy and to call one of my friends. Say what? He used to help me at the drop of a hat. I was __**so **__pissed. I just walked away. Hey on the bright side it allows me more time to journal and paint. I feel so special._

"Autumn, I need you to watch Trian while I head to work." Mark turned to leave. Autumn looked at him like he'd lost his mind, she was planning on painting and heading out to see Morgan and Hannah for lunch at the mall. It was a rare Friday off of school after all.

"But, I have plans today." Mark stopped and looked at her.

"It wasn't a question, Autumn. I've gotta go to work and I need you to watch him." Great, he was ordering her. She sighed and turned back to her drawing she was working on at her easel.

"Why don't you take him with you?" Mark ignored her and turned to leave. She sighed. "You two do everything else together," she mumbled under her breath. Mark turned and walked into the room.

"Take a seat." Autumn sighed and went back to drawing. Mark rolled his eyes…teenagers. "I said _sit_." She set her charcoal pencil on the edge of the easel then plopped down next to Mark. He looked at her, she looked sullen and angry. He rubbed his eyes in frustration and took a deep breath. "Alright, you and I both know that I'm not good with words and feelings so just tell me what you're thinking and save us both the aggravation." Autumn fidgeted.

"It's nothing ,really." She went to get up but Mark pulled her back down.

"You're lying." She sighed.

"Fine, I don't like you spending all that time with Trian, ok? There I said it, I'm a jerk and sue me." Mark shook his head and pulled her close.

"No, I'm a jerk. I was so wrapped up in making him comfortable that I sorta forgot to think how you'd feel. I'm sorry." Autumn looked at Mark.

"Thanks Dad." Mark ruffled her hair causing a grunt.

"Stay outta my hair!" Mark shook his head and stood up. "So does that mean that you'll take Trian with you to work?" Mark sighed.

"No, it doesn't. He's still staying here with you, I've got a lot of paperwork to do today." Autumn frowned, he never cared about that when he made her go.

"Look, I know what you're thinking. You were older and could handle yourself. He's six that'd be irresponsible." Autumn shook her head and stood up going back to her easel. Of course it'd be irresponsible, everyone has to care about him. Everyone.

"I had plans."

"So?"

"This is unfair." Mark raised his eyebrow. "I had plans, you changed your plans and now I'm getting shafted. Sounds like bull to me." Mark felt his neck tense. She was hanging out with Hannah too much.

"Well actually, you thought you had plans. If you remember correctly you have to _ask_ before you can go anywhere, and if I do believe correctly you're still grounded." Autumn scrunched her face…details.

"But today was the last day and—" Mark shook his head.

"Too bad, make sure your brother has lunch I'll be home before dinner." Autumn sighed.

"Yes sir." Mark kissed the top of her head. Mark smiled.

"Trian!" Almost instantaneously after Mark's voice boomed through the house footsteps were head and then a small boy with brown curly hair appeared in the doorway smiling ear to ear.

"Yes sir?"

"I'm going to work and your sister is going to watch you, be a good boy okay?" Trian's bottom lip poked out.

"But I wanna go with you." Mark shook his head.

"Naw, Buddy not this time." Trian looked at the floor sadly. Mark sighed, two kids and two opinions. Ugh.

"But I wanna." Mark sighed.

"Sit both of you." They looked at each other and did as they were told. Mark knelt down in front of them. "I know we all want different things here, but what I say goes. So get over it. Trian you're staying with Autumn. Autumn you're watching your brother. Now get over it." Mark kissed both of them on the forehead. "I'll call and check in on you," he said and left the room. Autumn heard the alarm set and sighed. Trian punched her in the arm.

"Ow! What the heck?" Trian smiled evily at her, while she rubbed her arm.

"Mark's gonna 'dopt me." Autumn rolled her eyes, she was sure he was. Great.

"That's nice, now get out." Trian frowned and shook his head.

"Mark said you gotta watch me, so play with me."

"No, I have things to do." Trian got his evil smile again.

"If you don't play with me, I'll do stuff to you." Autumn looked at him and laughed.

"Like what? Kick me? Yeah right get out of here." Trian shrugged and walked out of the room. Autumn called her friends and told them she couldn't make it, then got consumed in her paintings. She put her headphones on and fell into a creative mood. She was shocked that she'd finished two big canvases. She stepped back and admired her work. Sweet. Her cellphone started ringing.

"Hello?"

"Hey Ladybug, how are things?"

"Fine, just doing some paintings." She plopped down onto her bed.

"I bet they're real good, huh?"

"Yeah, I think they're some of the best I've ever done." Mark smiled, she sounded really at peace.

"Ok, so how was Trian?" Autumn didn't want to lie, but the truth really wasn't in her best interest.

"Uh he hasn't been any trouble at all." Mark smiled, he knew they'd work it out.

"Ok, well I'm getting' off early. I thought maybe you and Trian would like to go to the stables and see the horses." Autumn beamed they hadn't done that in a while.

"Sure, I'll get him ready." Mark smiled, she was dealing with responsibility well.

"Ok, be home soon." She smiled to herself and set down the easel, she'd need to clean up a bit first.

"Trian!" She checked his room, but he wasn't there. So she went downstairs to find pure horror. The fridge was open and all the food was on the floor. Jelly was smeared on the walls, utensils were all over the carpet. Nothing was in its rightful place. "TRIAN!" She heard the TV in the movie room and ran in there. He was sitting happily on the couch engrossed in cartoons. She walked over to him and snatched the remote out of his hands. "What are you doing?" He shrugged.

"Watching TV." Autumn almost burst with anger, she'd get in trouble for this.

"You need to go and clean that mess up, my dad's gonna be home any minute." Trian smiled.

"So you clean it up. He's your dad." Autumn wanted to strangle him. Angrily she half picked him up and half drug him into the living room.

"You're gonna clean this crap before Mark gets home." She heard a grunt.

"Too late." She dropped Trian onto the floor and stared up at a very angry Mark William Calaway.

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	12. Chapter 12

Autumn was sitting in the corner letting tears pour from her eyes. She hated crying. Sadly though she couldn't help it. Mark's punishment wasn't that severe, but it had stricken her to the core. She really shouldn't be crying over having to clean up Trian's mess, being yelled at, and being grounded from painting for the weekend, but she was. It hurt her so bad to know that someone else had Mark's heart. She was so conflicted and it only made her cry harder. No matter what she did she just couldn't get the tears to stop, so finally she gave up on being quiet and just cried. She let all of her emotions out, it seemed that all those months of not crying had come back with a fury and were pouring through her eyes all at once. She cried so hard that she didn't' even hear the door open. "Autumn?" She looked up to see Mark standing there, usually she'd try to hide her tears but she didn't care she just put her head back down. Mark sighed, he hadn't found her sitting on the floor in a while. He did the best he could to crouch down on the floor beside her, which was quite difficult with his large frame. He wrapped his arm around her and let her cry. He wasn't sure why she was crying, but he knew he probably had something to do with it.

After a while Autumn's tears stopped and she took a deep breath. She couldn't help but to feel really dumb, he was her brother and she didn't want him around. "Wanna talk?" Autumn shrugged.

"Not really, no." Mark smiled.

"Ok, so let's talk." Autumn frowned, he was ordering her again. She shifted.

"It's dumb."

"If you feel it, then it's not dumb." Autumn sighed.

"Fine, I feel like you don't need me or love me since Trian got here, ok?" Mark gave her an incredulous look. "Yeah I know, it makes me a horrible person." She sighed and rubbed her hand through her hair. "I just can't stand the thought of losing you. First Sammy, then you, it's just too much." Mark sighed, he hadn't considered those options, he just thought she was being spoiled. Maybe that's just what she needed.

"Ladybug, you know you're my first priority."

"Sure doesn't feel that way." Mark sighed.

"Well, what do you want me to do? I promised Sammy that I'd find him a good home."

"There are other good homes." Mark couldn't believe what he was hearing, usually by now she'd come to her senses. She must really be feeling slighted. She started to cry again.

"What's wrong?"

"I know it's wrong to feel like this, I do. I just can't help it. I'm the most selfish person in the world."  
The tears started coming harder. "Finally, when I find someplace happy where I feel loved it all gets snatched away. It's like reliving those years all over again. They keep haunting me!" She sobbed into his chest. Mark rubbed her back, he knew she was upset, but he'd forgotten the extent of her complexities. He made up his mind.

Autumn stopped crying and buried her face in her hands. Mark hadn't said anything in a while. "You hate me now don't you?" Mark shook his head.

"No, not at all."

"Then you think I'm a horrible person." Again he shook his head.

"Nope." Autumn frowned, she thought all those things about herself. "Actually, I think you might be right." Say what? "You did spend eight years in hell, and you did have to fight to find love. I think you deserve to have all of my attention." Autumn was confused.

"I don't understand." Mark smiled.

"I told you that you were my first priority, didn't I?" She nodded. "Good, I think I've got an idea, that is if you're up for it." Autumn was all ears.

The next morning Autumn woke up still feeling rather badly. Mark had told her that he'd be up early making phone calls to get his plan into motion. Quietly she got out of bed and crept down the stairs. It was early still and the house was quiet. She found Mark sitting at the counter on the phone, he motioned her to come and sit down. "Alright, perfect. See you then." Mark put the phone down and smiled at her. "Mornin' Ladybug."

"Morning."

"How'd you sleep?" Autumn shrugged…nightmare. That alone let Mark know he was doing the right thing. "Did you um, get it well you know taken care of?" Mark gave her a soft smile.

"Yeah I did, it took some doing, but your Dad got it all worked out." She smiled softly at him, he really didn't want to do this, but it seemed better for all parties involved.

"I still feel bad." Mark shook his head.

"Nothing to feel bad about, this was my decision."

"I know, but if I hadn't been feeling this way then…" Mark too his hand and made her eyes meet his.

"Look at me. There's no reason to feel bad. You were right to feel the way you do. Everyone deserves happiness ok? Autumn sighed, she'd just have to let him win this one. "I've got some people coming over soon, open the door for them ok?" She nodded.

"Where are you going?"

"To get your brother ready to leave." Autumn nodded, she still felt like crap.

Mark walked upstairs to the guest bedroom where he found Trian sitting playing with his toy truck. He smiled when he saw Mark enter the room. "Hey Mark! What are we going to do today?" Mark shook his head.

"Come here Buddy." Trian walked over and sat on Mark's lap. "I just want you to know that I love you and so does Autumn."

"Ok." Mark sighed.

"I found you a new house to live in." Trian's face dropped.

"Why? Was it 'cause last night? I won't ever do that again." Mark shook his head.

"No Buddy, you need a mom and a dad." Trian shook his head.

"No, I want you." Mark sighed, this was harder than he'd thought it'd be. Then of course, the doorbell rang.

Autumn got up to get it and gasped when she opened the door, there in the flesh was Shawn Michaels aka the heartbreak kid.

**NOT THE END! MUHAHAHAHA**

"Hey, you must be Autumn, I'm Shawn and this is my wife Rebecca." Autumn shook their hands and ushered them inside.

"Dad! Shawn Michaels is here." Shawn chuckled as he uncovered his ears. "Sorry." Mark walked down the stairs with Trian and his small bag in his arms. Rebecca smiled and whispered to Shawn.

"That must be him, he's adorable." Mark walked into the room and set Trian down. He walked over and shook Shawn and Rebecca's hands.

"Thanks guys, I really appreciate this." They shook their heads.

"Oh, it's nothing." Autumn stood there watching them talk, wow he was going to live with them? Crazy. Shawn knelt down in front of Trian.

"Hey Buddy, what's your name?"

"Trian Lewis." Shawn looked at Rebecca and smiled.

"Ok, well I'm Shawn and this is my wife Rebecca. Do you know who we are?" Trian glanced at Mark who was smiling.

"Mark says you're my new parents, is that true?" Rebecca knelt down next to Shawn.

"Only if you want us to be." Trian glanced at Autumn who was looking on in confusion.

"Where do you live?"

"San Antonio."

"Do you have cattle? I always wanted to be a cowboy." Shawn smiled.

"No, but we do a lot of horseback riding and hunting." Trian beamed up at him.

"Really?" They both nodded.

"Could I get my own gun?"

"Maybe in a few months, our son Cam has one too." Trian smiled. "Woulda ya say? You wanna come live with us?" Trian took a deep breath and nodded.

Soon, the newly added to family was heading back home. Mark hugged Trian. Then Trian walked over to Autumn and glared at her. "Bye," he said without emotion. Everyone in the room took a deep breath. She watched them leave and Autumn knew her life would never be the same.

**To Mattaggot for Lucas ;) **

**Keep reviewing…love it guys and the poll question will be answered VERY soon.**


	13. Chapter 13

Mark tiptoed into Autumn's room. He smiled at her sleeping so peacefully. In the last year, she'd come so far. After he got her set up with a child psychologist, she'd really been able to work through a lot of her trauma. At first she was reluctant, but after Mark bribed her with an up in allowance she'd agreed. Oh, to bribe a teenager. Mark walked into the room and opened the blinds. He set the tray down on the table and sat on the bed. Autumn rolled over grumpily. "Go away," she said turning over away from the new light and covering her face. Mark laughed.

"Nope, now roll over and eat this crap." Autumn sighed, of course he wouldn't go away. Grumbling as she sat up and rubbed her eyes. Mark set the plate on top of her lap.

"How enticing Mr. Calaway." Mark rolled his eyes…teenagers. Autumn cracked her knuckles and grabbed the fork off the side of the tray.

"How'd you sleep?" Autumn shrugged, Mark knew that meant that she'd had a nightmare. They were rare these days but still occurred. He kissed her forehead. "Happy birthday, Ladybug." Autumn smiled.

"Thanks Dad." Autumn ate her pancakes and eggs while they chatted a bit, but mostly she was trying to probe out some answers about her birthday surprise. She knew she was going to see Raw in Houston, but he was definitely hiding something. Mark refused to budge though.

"You'll just have to wait until…after you get showered." Autumn screamed and handed him the tray before running into the shower as quickly as humanly possible. Mark chuckled to himself. The doorbell rang and he headed to pick up the surprise. He opened the door to find an even more rebellious looking Hannah McCarthy. She had changed in the year since the divorce that caused her and her mom to move. The whole thing devastated Autumn, but they still skyped to keep in touch. Mark looked at her. She hadn't really changed a bit except that her now small frame was all legs and arms but still with those dreaded piercings.

"Hey Big Guy." Mark smiled at her, even though they didn't see eye to eye she still had a good understanding of each other, well for Autumn's sake.

"Hi to you too. Come on in, Ladybug should be down in a few minutes." Hannah laughed.

"You still callin' her Ladybug?" Mark rolled his eyes.

"Glad to see you haven't changed."

"Wish I could say the same…bald man." Mark frowned.

"Just go and get some juice out of the fridge." Hannah laughed.

"Glad to see you still have that temper." Mark shook his head and headed up stairs. Man, he hoped Autumn wasn't in one of her four hour long shower moods. He turned the corner to see a streak known as Autumn frantically crossing the hall in a towel. He laughed. She slammed the door.

"Don't you dare come in here!" Mark laughed.

"I wasn't gonna, just thought I'd tell you that your surprise is here." Autumn squealed and Mark heard drawers opening and closing frantically. Mark laughed. He saw Hannah climbing the steps with a piece of cantaloupe in her hands chewing on it while dripping all over the carpet. She took her free fist and banged on the door.

"Hurry it up Lewis!" Autumn screamed and opened the door in jean shorts and a bra. She frowned at Mark and pulled Hannah into her room. Mark walked away shaking his head. He'd let them have their fun until it was time to go. He went and sat in his recliner. It was going to be good to have a little alone time to himself for a while. Maybe he'd take a nap…yes that's what he would do. Mark closed his eyes…and his cell went off. Of course. Angrily he flipped open the phone.

"What?"

"Well is that how you greet and old friend, Mark?" Mark sat up straight.

"Vince?"

"Yes, it's me. So how are you doing these days?" Mark sighed he hadn't heard from Vince in over eight months.

"What do you want?" Vince chuckled.

"You always did like to get right down to the point, didn't you? Well, I have a proposition for you."

"And?"

"Well, Shawn Michaels is retiring soon and he'd like one final go with you."

"Vince, I'm retired."

"I know that Mark, we all do. Problem is you left so abruptly that the fans felt cheated. We were all talking the other day about how amazing it would be to have the Undertaker come out of retirement to battle Shawn Michaels himself in one last match at Wrestlemania…streak vs. career." Mark sighed, Vince was always quite the salesman.

"What would I have to do?"

"Well work Wrestlemania obviously, and work a couple of Raws, but nothing too major. You'd have about four months to get ready."

"Good pay day?"

"Of course." Mark sighed, he did miss having some in ring action, and it was only for one night.

"Vince, I'll think about it and let you know tonight." They hung up and Mark sighed he had one more phone call to make.

Mark rolled his eyes as Hannah and Autumn babbled in the behind him. For the last forty-five minutes he'd heard nothing but cackling and ridiculous boy talk. He felt like his head would explode. It had been a while since he was in an arena for a show. He smiled, it was just like home. Mark enjoyed the immediate respect that was given to him as he walked the halls. The more he thought about it, the more he thought Vince was right. He owed it to himself to give himself one last match. After all, his baby had yet to see him wrestle in person. There would of course be a couple of conditions.

"Taker!" Mark turned around and smiled. There was Cena with Orton…two peas in a pod. They shook hands. Orton gestured towards Autumn.

"Hey John, this can't be Autumn, this little girl is all grown up." Autumn rolled her eyes and turned to Hannah.

"You just saw me like two months ago." Randy smiled.

"That's a long time small fry." Autumn gave him a look and shook her head.

"Anyway, Hannah, these two morons are Randy Orton and John Cena. Don't mind their ridiculousness they just can't help themselves. Two morons this is my best friend, Hannah." Hannah nodded smiling. Mark saw this as a good time to go and find Vince.

"Guys you mind watching them for a minute, I gotta go talk to somebody." Cena nodded.

"Sure thing, it'll gimme some time to catch up with Autumn here." He wrapped his big arm around her collarbone and pulled her close to his body. Mark rolled his eyes.

"You hurt her…" John shook his head and waved him off.

"Yeah I know, you'll murder me three times. Yeah yeah, just go." Randy looked at Mark.

"Where you going?" Mark cut him a look. "Nevermind, just check the locker room or catering when you're done." Mark nodded and turned to go find Vince. He loved how he still could strike fear in grown men. Man, he'd missed this.

Cena and Orton decided to take the girls to catering to pick up some food. It was an interesting little battle as Hannah and Orton threw insults back and forth. John and Autumn just shook their heads and laughed hysterically. Autumn couldn't believe her fortune, her best friend was back and she was spending the night with her extended family. Suweet.

Mark knocked on the door Marked 'Vince' and knocked. Mark walked in and they two men shook hands. Mark took a seat. Vince covered the all the details to the new few months and Mark was in agreement, for the most part.

"I have just one request." Vince nodded.

"I have a protégé who's been working with me for the last two years. Kid's real good. I'd like you to give him a shot at FCW." Vince thought about it and nodded.

"If he's got your seal of approval then lets sign him up." Mark nodded and they shook hands. "I'll have the papers faxed to your attorney and I'll keep you posted."

"Have a good night."

"You too. By the way how's that daughter of yours?" Mark smiled.

"She's great, hanging with Orton and Cena." Vince laughed.

"Well you better go and find her, those two are known for mischief." Mark smiled and left, he needed to go see Shawn.

Hannah returned to the table after making a phone call, not looking very happy at all. She looked at Autumn with sad eyes. "That was my dad, he's upset that I'm back in Houston and not seeing him. So he's sending a car to come get me." Autumn's face dropped.

"What?" Hannah took a deep breath.

"I'm sorry Iggy, I really wish my dad wasn't such a jerk." Cena looked at Autumn.

"This sucks, but I understand. How long is it going to take the car?" Hannah rolled her eyes.

"He said about fifteen minutes." Autumn shook her head. "I know this ruins your birthday, but you know I can't get out of it." Autumn gave a soft smile.

"I'll wait with you outside." Hannah smiled up at Randy.

"Thanks." They walked off leaving John and Autumn alone at the table. Autumn looked visibly down.

"It's ok kid, you still got me right?" Autumn rolled her eyes.

"Moron." John smiled at her. They'd become pretty close in the last year or so. Ever since the 'shoving' incident, John made it a point to call and talk to her at least once a week. He was kinda like an older brother to her.

"So you ok?" Autumn nodded, her mind still on Hannah. "You wanna talk about it?" She shrugged. John knew better than to push. "You know I'm just one call away right?" Autumn smiled and nodded.

"Thanks John-Boy." John rolled his eyes, he decided to change the subject.

"So you ready to be a Calaway?"

"Oh, totally. I can't wait." John smiled at her. "Besides I'm tired of having to explain to people why I have a different last name than my dad. You'd think they wouldn't ask, but they do. Stupid people."

"So, have you talked to Trian lately?" Autumn shrugged, they talked but it was rare, he had his family and she had hers. Simple as that. John sighed. "Come on, he's your little brother." She glared at him.

"You think I don't know that! Geez, I wish everyone would stop telling me that. He doesn't want to talk to me." John sighed, he knew that was a sore spot.

"Sorry for going there."

"Don't worry about it, sorry I blew up at you."

"Oh what's up with your art expo?" Autumns face visibly brightened.

"It's going really well. You know they're displaying five of my big canvases and even a couple of my small sculptures. I can't wait." She paused. "Will you come?" Even after almost two years, Autumn still had a hard time letting people into her world. She was holding her breath that he'd answer.

"Of course I will. I'll even see if Randy wants to come." Autumn beamed.

"Will Randy come to what?" Autum smiled.

"To my art expo. This year I'm the featured artist for the 8th grade class." She was practically glowing about it. Randy looked at her.

"Sure I'll go, just text me the info." She smiled at him.

"Yay," they loved her, she was such a little kid, and it was refreshing in this world of adults.

"John, it's time to head out. Summer, it's time to go find Old Deadie." Autumn shook her head.

"Autumn, my freaking name is Autumn!" She scowled and Randy smiled evilly at her. "Well, how about I tell my dad that you're referring to him as Old Deadie?" Randy's smiled faded.

"Now now, let's remember that if I die, I won't be able to come to your art expo." Autumn nodded.

"True, and for that purpose alone, I won't snitch." Randy nodded.

"Good kid," he said patting her on her head. Autumn frowned. They all headed out of catering.

Mark walked into the locker room that Shawn and Paul (Triple H) shared with each other. He found both men standing already in their ring attire to wrestle their match against Legacy tonight. They both smiled when they saw Mark enter.

"Good to see you, man." Mark nodded and shook Paul's hand.

"You too Paul, Shawn."

"So you talk to Vince?" Mark gave him a scowl and then nodded.

"Yeah, it's a go." Both Shawn and Paul looked at each other then smiled.

"Welcome back." Mark nodded, welcome back indeed.

Autumn was happily giggling in John's locker room as they watched legacy get a beat down courtesy of Degeneration X. After Mark's convo with Shawn, he had to go make some phone calls to set up Mitch's try-out and get more preliminary work done for their Wrestlemania match. So, she'd been left with John under strict orders to behave. Not that doing that was hard, it was just unlikely. It was quite common that when she and John were together they would do things that Mark would have a cow over. Filling water balloons and dropping them on superstars, putting random whoopee cushions in chairs, stealing wrestling gear, you know usual kid stuff. "What you wanna do?" John smiled.

"Something that's gonna make Marks' neck muscles twitch." Autumn nodded.

"Let's do it."

Mark and Shawn were sitting in the dressing room going over their storyline. They both had some creative ideas to get them over with the crowd. They talked for a while catching up, then of course Trian came up as a topic of interest. "So how is he?" Shawn shrugged.

"He's doing fine, it was a little rocky at first but he's fallen right into line." Mark nodded. "Yeah he loves his Mama and being a big brother. I gotta say he's a little joy." Mark smiled, it was good to know that Trian had found such a good home. "We're actually supposed to be going on a little vacation here soon. He's really excited, I told him and Cam that they could have their first real hunt." Mark opened his mouth but the door burst open.

"Taker have you seen Cena?" Jericho sighed then Shawn and Mark noticed that he only had a towel on. Mark shrugged. "He had that girl with him and they stole my clothes." Mark sighed, he knew they'd get into trouble. Shawn laughed.

"Hey Mark it sounds like your baby's at it again." Mark took a deep breath.

"I know." Jericho stormed out of the dressing room leaving Mark and Shawn to chuckle. Mark stood up. "It was good talking to you again, but I've gotta go and wrangle this kid up and get her home." Shawn nodded and Mark walked out of the door.

Autumn was laughing hysterically. She and John were having a blast. All over the arena superstars were going around in towels, and no one knew where to find their clothes. They just disappeared. John smiled as Randy couldn't find his pants. Autumn and John were holding in their laughter until Orton threw them a look. "Hey I thought I was in on it too?" They couldn't help it and burst out laughing. John stood up and raised his arm.

"This is to Ms. Autumn Soon-to-be-Calaway, and her brilliant mind for pranks. This will go down in history."

"Yes it will." All smiles faded as they heard the deep gravel voice of Mark 'the Undertaker' Calaway. Autumn set her drink down and turned around.

"Hey Dad." Mark shook his head.

"Go apologize to all the superstars and return their clothes." Autumn looked at John. "What?"

"They're um sorta hanging from the ceiling," John said. Mark shook his head.

"How'd they get there? You know what never mind. Autumn go apologize, John here will return bags."

"But Dad-" Mark cut her a look and she sighed. "Yes sir." Autumn left the room leaving John and Randy to endure his gaze.

"Look guys, I know it's all in fun, but you've gotta be better role models for her. She's still young and impressionable." John and Randy nodded.

"You're right, I'll go help her apologize."

"Wait, before you guys go, do you mind taking her out to dinner? She's really been bummed lately about her friend Hannah and I think you two knuckleheads are just what the doctor ordered."

"Sure Mark, you know we love Autumn." Randy nodded.

"No problem." Both men left to tell Autumn the good news. Of course she'd be stoked.

**Alright guys…poll has been answered. Thanks for reviewing!**

**Mattaggot, Cena's baby doll, Souless666, SimplyPriceless2012, Breezyroo, xxxRKOEnigmaxxx and Sonib89**


	14. Chapter 14

_I can't tell you how great this birthday was. I mean, I don't think it could have been any better. I had Mark, I had John and Randy it was great! It was the best night of my life. I know I'm rambling, but I can't tell you how great it was to finally have a birthday that wasn't marred with turmoil or sadness. Mark even got John and Randy to take me out to dinner. Now that was purely amazing. We went to Olive Garden and boy can they eat a lot of breadsticks I thought the place was going to have to shut down. Of course Randy had to try to get John back and failed miserably. It was the lamest joke ever, he switched the salt with sugar…how innovative. Needless to say me and John laughed hysterically at his face contorted with anger. I was super shocked with John gave me a picture of us together from a few months ago. It was really a sweet gesture, although I'd never tell him that. But the best part of the night was after John and Randy dropped me off. I walked inside and Mark was sitting on the couch reading. I greeted him and headed upstairs to find a new flat screen tv mounted on the wall in my room! Now that was unbelievable! I never EVER thought that he would let me get a tv in my room, let alone a brand new 32in flat screen. I was speechless, life is good. _

Autumn walked down the hallway. It was six thirty in the morning and she usually wasn't up this early, but hey she wasn't going back to sleep now anyway. She decided to go and find Mark, maybe he'd have an idea of what to do. She listened at his door and heard nothing. A smile crept across her face…he'd sure enjoy being woken up by a jolt of 105lbs on his stomach. She opened the door, but he wasn't sleeping. He had his head buried in his hands and judging from the way his shoulders were heaving he was crying. She shifted awkwardly, she didn't know what to do. "Dad?" he didn't respond. Autumn began to slowly walk towards him. She didn't know why, but she couldn't stop herself either. She shifted and stood in front of him. With all of her guts she placed her small hand on his shoulder. "Dad?" Mark flinched at her touch and looked up. She removed her hand and dropped them it by her side. His eyes were red and puffy and his demeanor was lacking. Mark sighed.

"Go, I'll see you later." Autumn didn't really understand what he meant. He was always there for her when she cried.

"But, um I wanna help you." Mark groaned inwardly. It was already upsetting to know she'd caught him crying, but now she wouldn't leave.

"Go." Autumn shook her head, finding some confidence she didn't know existed.

"Unh uh. You always hold me when I cry." Mark sighed, he was getting frustrated. Autumn sat down next to him and placed her hand on his shoulder. A surge of anger passed through Mark. He didn't need her help…or her pity. He turned towards her and glared at her with fire.

"Get out of my face right now," he growled. Autumn turned pale and felt a shudder of fear run through her body. Before she could stop it, tears began to flow from her eyes, but she wouldn't let them fall. She shook her head.

"Fine! I don't want you either!" With that she got up and ran out of his room, back into hers, and slammed the door. This was so frustrating! They took two steps forward and nine backward. She grunted. Might as well paint, its better than letting her frustration get the best of her.

Mark was now in his room feeling worse than he did before. He hadn't meant to snap at her, actually he was kinda proud of her for standing up to him. She was turning into quite the little spitfire. He grunted. He wasn't expecting her to bust in on him while he cried. He didn't want anyone to see him cry let alone his little girl. Of course, it was time to go and apologize to her. He waited a few minutes and let his face change back to normal. He walked down the hallway and heard her grunting. Of course she was painting. He walked in, she smiled to himself. She was so beautiful. Long flowing brown hair, long legs and tan skin. He knew he'd have to kill young boys sooner or later.

"Autumn." Autumn heard her name and sighed. Oh he wanted to apologize. Well she was tired of apologies. "I know you can hear me, let's talk." Autumn sighed and set her brush down. She sat down on the other side of the bed as far away from him as she could get. Mark frowned. "Wanna sit any farther away?"

"If I could." Mark chuckled at least her mouth was still intact.

"Alright, let's get this over with." He sighed. "I'm sorry, I snapped at you. I know I say that a lot but I'm just not used to having to reign in my temper." Autumn gave him a look of disbelief and frowned.

"Sure."

"Autumn, you know I don't deal well with emotions."

"I don't care, I don't deal well with strangers or dark places and you make me deal with them anyway. You always say 'rule your fear don't let it rule you'." Mark frowned, he did say that.

"Fine, so what do you want me to do?" Autumn sighed and shook her head before getting off the bed.

"This is useless."

"Autumn."

"NO! Seriously, you're such a liar. Baby 'it's me and you against the world' 'I'll always be here for you' yaddah yaddah. That's bull. You take care of me and that's it. I'm useless." She paused. "Or maybe it's cause you think I'm too damaged to handle it." Mark rubbed his hand down his face and stood up.

"Woah, you need to reign in that attitude. Show me some respect, here I'm trying."

"And I'm tired of TRYING! Screw this. It's over, nothing is worth this. How can you make me feel so special and so useless at the same time?" Mark stopped dead in his tracks, had he done that?

Part II will be up hopefully before the end of the weekend.

Thanks everyone for the reviews!


	15. Chapter 15

**"And I'm tired of TRYING! Screw this. It's over, nothing is worth this. How can you make me feel so special and so useless at the same time?" Mark stopped dead in his tracks, had he done that?**

"What? Autumn you're very special. I trust you with all kind of crap." Autumn scoffed.

"Yeah sure, I know where all the groceries go. Face it, you think I'm too weak minded to help you with your problems."

"Autumn, you know that's not true."

"Oh yeah? Well riddle me this, how come you never tell me what's bothering you? Or why do you hide everything from me? I know life isn't full of roses, trust me I know that. Remember you're talking to the kid who was abused for eight years. So spare me, if you wanna insult my intelligence, ok?" Mark looked at her. He _really_ looked at her. Her features were riddled with anger and confusion. He could see the pain in her eyes, he sighed. It had come to that point. The point he'd dreaded for two years, he had to tell her the truth. He sat on her bed.

"Alright, I'm going to meet you where you want me to." Autumn looked at him with interest. "Come here."

"Actually I'd rather stand." Mark sighed, choose your battles.

"Fine, what I'm about to tell you is something only a few people know." He sighed. "Four years ago this week me and my family," he cleared his throat. "Uh we were driving down the highway toward my parents' house when a dump truck ran a stop sign." He closed his eyes. "We weren't even supposed to be out, but I had the weekend off and talked everyone into it." He took a deep breath and Autumn began to soften, he'd never revealed any of his life with his family to her. It was like they hadn't existed. "The truck pushed us into a pole." Tears were streaming down his face now.

"Daddy—" Mark shook his head.

"No, you need to hear this. Allie and Kyle were on the side where the pole split the car in half. They both died instantly. Trent, he uh was thrown from the car and died shortly after the ambulance got there. I watched my family die and it was my fault. _**All**_ my fault. I ran to him as fast as I could, but my leg was pinned down. By the time I got myself free and to him, his breathing was shallow." He took a deep breath. "My baby died in my arms." Autumn had tears in her eyes. "I have to live with the guilt everyday of knowing I caused the death of the people I love." Mark opened his arms for Autumn to walk into them, she did so willingly and sat on his knee. Mark wrapped his arms around her. "You're my last chance, I won't make the same mistakes. I try so hard…" He broke into a sob, Autumns' heart broke. She'd caused this. Autumn shifted her body and wrapped her arms around Mark's torso and cried with him. Mark shook off his tears and squeezed Autumn tighter. "Ok, since I divulged to you, it's your turn. What are you nightmares about?" Autumn felt her body go cold. That was too much. Mark kissed her head. "Alright, one step at time alright?" She nodded.

The rest of the day was somber. The tension of the early morning was gone, but it had been replaced with an eerie calmness. Like something dreaded was looming on the horizon. They both could feel it and tried to shrug it off, but it was unshakable. For most of the day, they'd been just hanging out playing board games or watching TV, but around two in the afternoon Autumn got a call from Morgan asking to go the mall.

"Dad, can I go with Morgan to the mall?" Mark frowned, she was doing that almost every day now.

"No, actually I'd prefer if you stayed here today." Mark didn't want to admit it, but that feeling was overtaking him. He couldn't deal with it…not this week.

"Please?" He shook his head. Autumn grunted and walked back into the other room. "I'll be there, just pick me up just down the road or so in about ten minutes." They hung up. She knew that Mark would be glued to the American Chopper marathon for at least another four hours. That was just enough time for her to have a good time, before he freaked. Oh well, she'd deal with punishment when she got home. She glanced back into the movie room. "Dad, I'm going up to my room to paint." Mark looked at her and smiled. He was so proud of who she was becoming. He nodded.

"Alright Ladybug." Autumn sighed, hopefully she'd be able to have some fun before he noticed that she was gone. Stealing one last quick glance at him she walked out of the house.

Mark stood up and stretched. That was an amazing episode of American Chopper, those Teutuls were so dysfunctional. Maybe he'd see if Autumn wanted to watch a movie with him later. Yeah that sounded like a good idea. He climbed up the stairs to her room and knocked…she wasn't in there. He looked around, there was no paint splattered and all the tubes were closed. She hadn't painted today. He walked around the house starting to panic. He screamed her name and she wasn't responding. His heart couldn't take this anymore. He dialed her cellphone.

Autumn, Morgan, and Rachel were all sitting in the food court at the mall. The other two had done some serious shopping, but Autumn didn't want to add insult to injury. She knew Mark would be pissed if she bought stuff when she was grounded. They were giggling wildly when her phone started to vibrate. Her eyes grew large, he'd discovered her missing before she'd anticipated. "Hello?" Her voice was clearly scared.

"Autumn Calaway, where are you?" Autumn thought about it, she could lie and say at home but then he'd expect her to come out. "Well?" She panicked.

"I went out back to paint."

"Oh really? Cause I just was out there and you weren't there. And before you open your mouth to lie to me again, remember I have a bad temper." Autumn sighed, she was screwed.

"Fine, I went to the mall." Mark's eyebrow rose.

"After I specifically told you not to? Oh you're in so much trouble." She shrugged, she was sure of that. "Alright, you stay there I'll be there in twenty minutes." Autumn sighed. She closed her phone.

"Iggy, what's wrong?" Autumn shrugged.

"My dad's coming. Let's go and walk around some more." The other two girls nodded and they did just that.

Mark was so pissed as he hopped onto his chopper style motorcycle. Why would she deliberately disobey him? He thought they were making some serious progress. He sighed, this would have to be the lecture to end all lectures. She was gonna find out, that Mark William Calaway was not someone to disobey. He shook his head then a drastic light overtook his vision.

Autumn was walking around. It'd been forty-five minutes since Mark had called. Even though she wasn't looking forward to being punished, she was starting to worry. He was always on time. If he said twenty minutes he meant it. Her small hands started to fidget in worry. Every few minutes she would check her phone to see if he'd missed a phone call. None were there. Panic was slowly taking over her body. Please God let this be a joke. Yeah that was it, Mark was showing her how worried he'd been. She'd have to tell him that she didn't' like these kinds of jokes. "Ig?" Autumn was broken out of her thoughts by Morgan.

"Yeah, I was thinking what's up?" Autumn looked at her friend and her heart dropped. No, please God no.

"I just got off the phone with my mom. She's coming over right now, to take you to the hospital." Autumn was dreading her next words and held her breath. "Your dad's been in an accident." Autumn could swear that she felt her heart stop in her chest.

**Alright guys…it's an update. **

**Thanks for reviewing…Mattagot and Cena baby gurl as usual…you guys rock!**


	16. Chapter 16

Autumn sat nervously in the waiting room chewing her nails and tapping her foot. God she hated this. She needed Mark's arms to wrap around her and tell her everything was ok. Tears were sitting on the brink of eyes but she refused to let them out. She kept asking the nurses on an update of Mark's condition but everyone was hush mouthed or telling her that she needed an adult to be given the news. Both of which only made her feel even more scared. She really needed a hug, like really _really _bad. Morgan's mom had dropped her off, but of course they couldn't stay because they had to be at a gala. Autumn tasted blood in her mouth, stopping to survey the damage she saw that she'd chewed her nail down to the point of bleeding. She angrily wiped it on her jeans. Great, now she'd have to tap her fingers or something . God this sucked.

Two hours later and Autumn was still sitting there…alone. It never had hit her so hard that Mark was all she had in the world. Her defenses were wearing thin and she knew any moment she would burst into tears. Why wouldn't someone just tell her what's wrong? It seemed that she was invisible. "Autumn?" Before she looked up she ran into the person's arms. "Woah, Shorty, it's gonna be alright." John started rubbing her back. Before Autumn knew it she'd burst into tears. John looked at her with his heart breaking. Not having any family to speak of must suck. After he let her cry herself out he led her over to the chair and wrapped his arms around her protectively. Autumn wiped her tears.

"Why are you here?" John smiled.

"Because Vince told me that this little girl that I love dearly needed me." Autumn gave him a look, even though he was a dork, he was her dork.

"Thanks, I was going nuts sitting here all alone." John nodded.

"I can see," he said gesturing at her bloody nubs.

"Leave me alone I was nervous." John smiled and pulled her close. Autumn fidgeted. "John, what am I gonna do? What if he's dead or paralyzed or brain dead? I NEED him!" John took a deep breath.

"Mark's strong, but you know that he'll do everything in his power to come back to you."

"And so will I." Auutmn looked up and smiled.

"Thanks Randy." Randy smiled and walked over and kissed her forehead.

"No thanks necessary. Love you kid." Autumn smiled.

"Love you too." They all sat there for another forty-five minutes before John and Randy both got frustrated.

"Seriously, they haven't told you anything?" Autumn shook her head. "Time to turn on the ole Viper." Autumn raised an eyebrow at him and watched him speak to the lady behind the counter. A petrified look came over her face while Randy walked back towards them with a smile. "A doctor should be out here soon." Autumn smiled, it was good to have two hundred pound wrestlers as family.

Within five minutes of Randy's spew a doctor walked over towards them. "Family of Mark Calaway?" Autumn nodded. "Alright, well Mr. Calaway was in a motorcycle accident. He sustained several broken bones including a leg, a clavicle, and right arm. His torso is heavily bruised, and he has a minor concussion. However, after a few months of rest and recuperation he should make a full recovery." Autumn felt like a weight had been lifted off of her shoulders. John and Randy smiled.

"Can I see him now?" The doctor nodded. Autumn didn't know what to feel, she'd never been so scared. Would he be mad? Gently she opened the door. Her breath caught, he was attached to tubes and had plaster and bandages all over him. "Daddy?" Mark stirred. She walked closer to his bed. "Um Daddy?" Mark's eyes fluttered open and he frowned.

"Hey, disobedient child." Autumn looked at the floor. It was true it was her fault this had happened.

"I'm uh sorry—" Mark cut her off.

"Yeah me too, now I'm gonna be stuck in this bed for weeks thanks to you." He paused. "All because I cared." Autumn felt the air leave her body and slowly backed away from his. This wasn't her daddy. She needed to leave. "Autumn." She shook her head and ran out of the room and right into Randy's arms.

"What's wrong, baby girl?" Autumn just shook her head and buried her face in his torso. Randy looked at John who nodded and walked into Mark's room. "Come on Kid, let's go and get you something to eat." Autumn gave a slight nod and clung to Randy as she slowly walked down the hallway away from Mark.

John entered Mark's room ready to kill. Why'd he have to keep hurting her? "Mark?" Mark's eyes fluttered open and he sighed.

"John. What are you doing here?"

"What do you think? I'm here to check on the kid." Mark rolled his eyes, of course. That was always why John was around.

"No kiddin'."

"What is wrong with you? That girl is out there crying her eyes out."

"She should be, this is her fault." If he wasn't in a hospital bed John would strangle him.

"Her fault? Mark she's a kid, she's gonna do dumb stuff. What's your excuse?" Mark didn't say anything, he didn't need to explain himself to John. "You know what? She can come and stay with me. I'll make sure she'll never feel the pain that you repeatedly cause her." That pissed Mark off, who was he to say that.

"You'll do no such thing. She's my daughter and I won't let you. So back off." John smirked.

"Let me? I think right now, she'd choose me. You know why? Because you're a jerk. All she ever wanted was your love and affection, but you can't even give that to her. Maybe you were right, you're a recluse who needs to be left alone." John shook his head and walked out. "Have a miserable existence, jerk." John closed the door leaving Mark to stew over his emotions. John walked down the hall in search of Randy and Autumn.

Autumn was staring at her bowl of soup she kept pushing the small chunks of noodles around. Randy shook his head, she'd told him what Mark had said needless to say he was pissed off. He kept trying to talk to her, but she rebuffed him every time. They had learned when she got like this it was better to let her sulk, otherwise you might end up with damaged ear drums.

Autumn heard Randy trying to talk to her, but she just couldn't seem to pay attention. She would nod but never really understood what he was saying. Everything seemed to be a far off and distant like she in a daze. Every time she blinked she saw Mark's angry glare and his frail body. No matter what she couldn't shake the image. Even as hours passed she still couldn't shrug it off. That night her nightmares weren't usual, they were of motorcycles being hit and the gruesome noises of bones breaking. She grunted and sat up in a cold sweat. She couldn't sleep and she'd never be able to write with all this on her mind. Her hands were shaking. Now that was something that scared Autumn, she was seriously scared if her hands were shaking. She made up her mind.

Quietly, she slipped out the kitchen door with her backpack slung over her shoulder. She sighed as she looked at John and Randy sleeping soundly on the couch. She'd really missed them. Once outside she ran down the driveway and towards the curb where the cab was waiting. Saving allowance was good.

Autumn hopped out of the cab after paying the driver. It would be really easy to catch a bus from here. She gulped and walked towards the elevators. Man, she hated being here. Hospitals suck. Sneaking past the nurses she crept into Mark's room. Her gasped, he looked so fragile. Tears started to flow down her cheek. As quietly as she could she pulled a chair next to his bed. She took a deep breath.

"Hi Dad uh Mark." She cleared her throat. "I um never meant for anything like this to happen. I wasn't thinking. Who knew going to the mall would cause all this drama?" She shifted slightly in her chair. "You're like superman, I'd always thought nothing could hurt you, but I guess I was wrong. How was I supposed to know that you weren't indestructible?" She sniffled. "Please, please don't hate me. I never wanted any of this to happen. You're my dad, the only one I've ever had." She stopped and stood up grabbing her bag. "What's the point, you probably can't hear me anyway. They've probably to you drugged up to high heaven." She smiled to herself while slowly putting the chair back Autumn took a deep breath. "I'm uh, leaving. I just thought you might like to know. I want you to have a good life, without drama…or me. Don't hate me, please." She walked over to him and kissed his cheek. "Bye Daddy." It felt like she was wearing lead shoes the door seemed so far away. She had to go, it was for the best. Each step was belabored and a task in its self. Finally, she made it to the door. She glanced at him one last time and opened the door.

"Pump your brakes." Autumn turned around in surprise, then continued heading out the door. "You walk out that door and I'm going to be even more pissed off than I was this afternoon." Autumn closed the door and looked at Mark. "What are you looking at? Get over here and give me a hug." Autumn felt tears well in her eyes.

"But I thought…" Mark shook his head.

"Just come here." Autumn set her bag down and slowly walked over towards Mark's bed. She was feeling very uncomfortable…and nervous. She went to grab the chair when Mark motioned her to sit on the bed.

"I-I don't want to hurt you." Mark sighed and he felt his heart muscles twinge. He cleared his throat.

"Just sit, I promise you won't hurt me." Autumn sighed and sat down very carefully. There was an awkward silence between them. Neither one of them knowing what to say. "This time is different." Autumn turned and looked at him. "This time, I was angry at myself and took it out on you. It wasn't your fault."

"Yeah right. I'm a disobedient child, remember? Had I just listened to you, none of this would have happened. It's all my fault."

"No, no baby it's not. Don't blame yourself for this. It was my fault. _I _was on the bike _I _was the one who wasn't paying attention, _I _turned the corner too soon. This is all on me." Autumn looked down at her fingers. Mark did his best to get his good arm to pull him up in the bed. Then he did something he knew she'd need more than anything. He pulled her into his embrace and the dam broke. Autumn cried like she'd never had before. All those years of turmoil, all the pain, the confusion, the worry was all coming out in a flood. Mark pulled her into the bed and let her cry, he should have thought about that before he spewed off. He knew with her in his arms right here and right now that, she was all she needed. His main priority, his baby.

The next morning, Mark woke up to Autumn still sleeping soundly in his embrace. He never felt so at peace than he was with her by his side. He knew somehow he'd have to let go of everything in his past and give her his best, she deserved nothing less. Mark's eyes shot to the door as John and Randy burst through. "We lost her!" Mark shook his head and looked down. They both let out a sigh of relief.

"She just took off ten years of my life." Mark frowned.

"You guys are great baby sitters. She was planning on catching a bus and heading out of the city." They glanced at each other.

"You serious? Man we put her to bed and woke up and she was gone. She moves like a ninja." Mark rolled his eyes.

"Just remind me to not let you two watch her ever again." John smiled.

"Well I'm glad you're back to your normal grouchy self. Just don't forget that girl over there needs the best of everything you have. " Mark nodded.

"We've gotta head to the airport, but we'll be in touch." Mark nodded and the two men left. He looked down at Autumn and smiled. He couldn't help but love her with everything he had. Everything.

Autumn finally started to stir. At first she was disoriented and then she was filled with mixed emotions. Was it all a dream? It couldn't have been, she was lying in Mark's bed. She should have just gone straight to the bus station which would have saved a world of confusion. Maybe she still could make it. Slowly she hopped out of the bed and picked up her bag. "I thought I told you to stay put." Autumn sighed. "Put the bag down and let's talk." She obeyed and sat in the chair.

"Ok." Mark frowned she was really nervous.

"Look, I don't ever want you to think about running away again, got it?" Autumn shifted. "Running is never the answer. Never." Autumn bored a hole in the floor with her eyes. "Look at me." She took a deep breath and stared into his green eyes. "You're all I got in the world. I want to promise you one thing right here and right now. No matter what happens between us, the world that get said, the anger that is displayed we will never turn back to where we came from. Sitting here right here and right now, we say nothing will ever be the same." Autumn looked into his eyes.

"No turning back?" Mark nodded.

"We start fresh." She nodded and walked over and grabbed his large hand.

"No turning back, Daddy."

Thanks for reading guys! Lemme know.


	17. Chapter 17

_When Mark said no turning back he really meant it. I mean really meant it. It's like he's a new man. No more yelling, no more 'do it or else', no more well, nothin'. Everything he did, he practically doesn't do anymore. Well you know, except the good stuff like making my lunch or taking me out to eat, or screaming his head off at a soccer game. Now, that stuff I still love. Actually it's kinda weird. It's like he's in a trance. Take for instance the other day, I decided to watch a late movie on TV which is a major faux pas in this house by the way and he caught me, but instead of yelling or grounding me. He quietly turned the TV off grabbed me by the hand and led me back upstairs. Without saying one word he kissed me on the forehead, pointed to the bed and left. Needless to say I was so freaked that I couldn't sleep anyway. When I say Mark is new he's __**NEW **__and it's scary. Oh well, I'm sorta wonderin' how far I can take this. This new look could be very good to me. _

Autumn talked downstairs and smiled, tonight was Garret's party and it was going to be the one of the year. His parents were out of town making it the greatest hangout for a bunch of freshmen. No parents=lots of fun. Problem being she hadn't got Mark's approval yet. Oh well, that shouldn't be too hard. Of course, when she walked downstairs Mark was on the phone. She sighed…he always was on the phone these days. "Hey Dad," she said as she walked into the kitchen and towards the fridge.

"Alright, see you soon and thanks again." Mark smiled at his daughter as she grabbed the milk out of the fridge. "Morning, Ladybug." Autumn rolled her eyes, at least his pet names were persistent.

"Morning Old Deadie." Mark's eyes narrowed.

"Where'd you get that?"

"Randy." Mark rolled his eyes.

"Uh, I have to go out of town to get my mind right for Wrestlemania in a few weeks." Autumn nodded, his bones were healed and he was cleared for by the doctor. Everything was a go.

"So am I going with you or…" Mark shook his head.

"No, actually since it's so close to the big show that a couple of your favorite superstars are off. I even got one of them to come and watch you for a while." Autumn looked on interestedly.

"Who is it?"

"You'll see." Autumn frowned.

"When are you leaving?"

"Tonight sometime. Probably right after dinner." Autumn smiled, this could be a good time to ask.

"Um may I go to a party tonight?" Mark shifted and looked at her.

"Who's?" Autumn shrugged nonchalantly.

"Garret Richards." Mark contemplated.

"I'll think about it and let you know when you get out of school." Autumn frowned, was it that serious?

"Alright," she said sullenly. Mark smiled and pulled her into a hug.

"You know Daddy loves you." Yeah sure. Autumn grabbed her keys off the counter. "Hey, I thought I was driving you."

"Um would you mind if I rode my bike…it's not that far?" Mark thought about it, her move to high school mid-year had been traumatizing to them both but she seemed to be adjusting well. He nodded.

"Yeah sure thing." Autumn smiled and ran out the door.

"Autumn." She sighed and turned around to see Mark with one hand extended. Rolling her eyes she ran back inside to give him a hug. He managed to kiss her on the head before she darted away from him again. Mark shook his head, they grow up _way_ to fast.

Autumn strolled through the hallways with her head held high. She had come a long way in just a few short years. For some reason she was quite popular…gee wonder if that's cause her last name is Calaway? Hmm. She grabbed her books and set off to her first class today was going to be a good day that is of course if she managed to make it on time today.

Autumn narrowed her eyes, this was gonna suck. Who knew that they actually did conduct checks in high school? Mark was going to freak! She knew that he'd totally overlook her straight A's and zero in on the stupid unsatisfactory conduct mark in five of her seven classes. She shook her head, there was no way she was going to be allowed to go to Garret's party. None. Great, she'd be labeled a social loser for the next four years. What a wonderful start to high school. Moving as quickly as she could she hopped onto her bike and sped off home. She didn't want to have to face any of her friends. This would suck.

After fifteen minutes of riding Autumn pulled into the yard. She smiled when she saw the Hummer in the driveway. Score. Doing what she always did, she dropped her bike on the grass and walked into the house. She walked into an abnormally eerily quiet house. What's going on? She kept calling for her dad, with no response. This was weird. Then a hand clamped down over her mouth from behind. She gasped, then frowned.

"Randy you jerk!" She started kicking him to which of course he could only smiled.

"Hey, if I'm a jerk then why am I'm here on my vacation saving you from Uncle Big Red Machine's house for a week? Hmm?" She frowned.

"Yeah well, you won't get to enjoy another vacation after I kick your head in," she had venom in her voice and was still trying to get her heart rate back down. Randy smiled and patted her head.

"Good little Viper." Autumn rolled her eyes and turned away from him, there was no seriousness with him.

"So where's my dad?" Randy shrugged.

"He had a few things to do." Autumn looked at him for more information.

"And he didn't tell you what or where?" Randy shook his head.

"Come on now, you know he tells me diddly squat." Autumn agreed, that was true. Mark didn't find Randy…trustworthy of most knowledge.

"So what do you want to do? It's Friday night and I'm sure he's going to nix my party idea so..." Randy shrugged.

"I'm sure between us we'll figure something out." Autumn smiled.

"Just let me change and put this crap away." She darted up the stairs and changed quickly. This should be fun, Randy is a really cool guy. The coolest guy actually. Behind his shy bashful nature, he was really fun and easy going. Unlike John who was taking a more authoritative role since Mark chewed him out over the 'clothes stealing incident'. Autumn didn't like it, but Mark sure did. John became a good babysitter in his eyes, which of course was to Autumn's dismay.

"Autumn!" She smiled as she recognized the voice and ran downstairs. She almost ran Mark over and engulfed him in a hug.

"Hey Daddy! How was your day?" Then she took a few steps back when she saw the scowl on his face. "Uh, what's wrong?" Mark grabbed her hand and led her to the kitchen counter. She sighed…lecture. He usually lectured in the kitchen so it'd be easier for him to get down on her level.

"Care to explain to me why I was called to a parent teacher conference?" Autumn glanced at Randy who gave her a sympathetic look. "Hmm, no answer. Ok, how about answering this, why is it that even though you leave this house every morning at 6:45 but you're late to first period almost every day?" Autumn shifted uncomfortably in her chair.

"I uh." Man this was hard…she didn't want to say something to piss him off more. "Uh." Mark rolled his eyes.

"Or how about why you can't seem to keep your mouth closed? I mean seriously FIVE unsatisfactory marks in conduct. You're kidding me right?" Autumn saw his jaw clenching, well at least old angry Mark was back too bad he was scaring the snot out of her.

"Um." Mark held up his hand.

"Save it." There was a silence between them and Autumn was FREAKING out. He was going to kill her. She knew it. Sure there were a lot of things in this world that pissed him off, but messing up in school was high, like really super stinkin' high on that list. Oh man. Mark stood there watching her freak. Good, this whole be nice thing apparently wasn't what she needed, although he didn't want to freak her out all at once he still had to show her he was in charge. This had to be calculated but fair yet impactful. "So this is what's going to happen." Autumn looked at him still freaked. "You my friend aren't painting or sculpting for three weeks." Autumn's mouth dropped.

"What, why?" Mark shrugged.

"Well clearly your art is soothing you to the point of LOSING YOUR MIND! You must have been crazy to think I'd be okay with this."

"I know it was dumb, but three weeks? Daddy that's not fair!" Autumn didn't know where her voice had come from considering she was about to wet herself with fear. Randy shook his head in disbelief looking on, Mark was going to lose it. He just knew it. Mark shrugged.

"Not fair huh? Ok, six weeks." Autumn thought she'd have a heart attack, six weeks? God help her. Mark had a very enlightened idea. "I'm going to let you keep your journal, but there's a catch." Autumn frowned, when parents came up with catches it was never good for the kid. "You're going to write a two thousand word essay on why you act the way you do and if it looks slapped together I keep your journal until it's up to my standards." Randy grimaced, ouch. Autumn's body deflated. He'd really lowered the boom. "Oh and I almost forgot, you lost your privilege to ride to school alone, from here on out I'm dropping you off." That made Autumn want to cry, fitting in was hard enough, that would just make life miserable. "Understand?" She nodded.

"Yes sir." Mark nodded.

"Oh and don't even think of going to that party or hanging out for a while." Again she nodded.

"Yes sir," she said with a more sullen tone.

"Alright I've gotta head to the airport earlier than I thought. You get upstairs and start righting that paper before dinner." Autumn frowned and Mark smiled. He walked over to her and kissed her forehead while pulling her into a tight hug. "Ladybug, you know I love you. It's you and me, got it?" She gave a soft smile.

"Got it."

"Alright, I love you."

"Love you too."

"And Randy don't let her eat whatever she wants or stay up til all hours of the night. It's eleven on school nights and twelve on weekends." Randy nodded.

"I know Mark I've watched her before." Mark frowned.

"And I supposed you know I'll kill you if anything happens to her." Randy nodded annoyed.

"Yes Old Deadie I know." Mark cut him a look and Randy held up his hands in surrender. "I meant Mark, yes Mark I know." Mark smiled, it was good to be the Undertaker.

"Bye Baby." Autumn waved.

"Bye Daddy." Mark walked out the door and Autumn turned to Randy. "So what movie you wanna watch?" Randy looked at her confusedly.

"We'll watch one later, right now you've gotta paper to write." Now it was Autumn's turn to be confused.

"Dude, you're actually going to enforce that? I can write it later." Randy shook his head.

"Or you can write it now like he said."

"But Randy…"

"NO, no but Randy, just do what I say and go." Autumn, glared at him. "Don't make this harder than necessary." Autumn shook her head disgustedly at him and walked up the stairs. Stupid jerk. She shook her head, if he was this bad over a stupid essay how bad would he be over the rest of the rules? Great just great, her dad had left her with Randy the Nazi.

Hey guys, thanks for continuously reading. I REALLY appreciate it. Please rate and review. Love you guys! And Shoutout to Mattagot for ALWAYS being the first reviewer!


	18. Chapter 18

Autumn was sitting at the counter pouting. Randy had lost his mind. First they never actually watched the movie, then he wouldn't let her watch TV, and to top it all off he was making her go to bed early _every_ night. But of course, the big stink was that he actually wouldn't let her talk on her phone until she finished her paper. What the heck? Now he was making them dinner. She was shaking her head, she'd call John to complain, but he laughed at her and told her it was her own fault for messing up at school and that she's was lucky because he would have been worse. Autumn shook her head, John was a dork and Randy was a freaking Nazi. Randy smiled at Autumn, he felt bad acting like a dictator this whole week, but he wanted her to know that they couldn't hang out unless her act was together. He wouldn't be responsible for her losing her mind and acting like a hoodlum. He loved her too much to let that happen to her. Too much. Randy put the food on the table they were eating salad and steak…again. Autumn sighed. He seriously needed to expand his horizons. They didn't talk much these days unless she was asking permission, he'd totally fallen off her cool chart. When dinner was over, Randy wiped his mouth and looked at her.

"Alright, how about you go and get your homework done?" Autumn groaned.

"I'll do it later, I'm tired now." Which wasn't a lie. She was on the varsity soccer team which was a major step up from club and was also way more exhausting. With practices every day after school and twice a week before school she was realizing how much work it took to be great at what you do. Although it gave her and Mark a new way to connect as they started working out together

"No, you'll do it now."

"Dude, I already did most of it. Just chill out ok?" She spat at him, she was starting to get irritated.

"Chill out? I am chill, you my friend is the one who isn't cool enough. Cool kids do all their homework. Cool kids aren't messing up in school. Cool kids behave. So kill that attitude." Autumn shook her head angrily and threw her fork down.

"Fine!" She stalked up the stairs and grabbed her cellphone. She was shaking with frustration as she hit the numbers. Finally the stupid phone picked up. "Daddy?"

"Hello?" Autumn looked at her phone, did she accidentally called the wrong number?

"Um, I think I called the wrong number, I was trying to reach my dad."

"Is this Autumn? Mark's daughter?" Autumn's face dropped, who's this chick?

"Yes," she said skeptically.

"Oh hi, this is Michelle I'm one of his friends. Mark had to step out for a minute. Oh wait no here he is." Autumn was getting angry. She heard them talking in hushed tones, then a deep familiar grunt.

"Hey Ladybug, how's my baby?"

"Who's that chick?"

"What your tone Autumn Mackenzie."

"Well, are you going to answer me?" Mark frowned, her mouth needed harnessing.

"That is my friend Michelle. She's here helping me with something." He paused. "Do you need something?" Autumn frowned.

"Yeah, I do for you to come home. Randy's gone Nazi and I miss you." Autumn knew she sounded like a petulant child, but she didn't care. She wanted her daddy to come home, like now.

"Sweetie, you've got one more day. I thought you and Randy would have a good time."

"I thought so too, but he's gone psycho. He won't let me do anything. I can't talk on the phone, I can't watch TV, I can't even stay up past ten!" Mark started laughing, who knew Randy had a spine? "Don't laugh at me jerk."

"I'm sorry, it's just funny I never once thought Randy would be the authoritative type."

"Please just come home, I really miss you."

"I miss you too baby, but I've gotta finish up here. I promise when I get home, we'll do something together." That didn't make Autumn feel better.

"Please?" She didn't know why, but she started crying. Not full out crying, but tears were slowly streaming down her face. Mark hated when she cried especially when he couldn't be there to comfort her. He rubbed his face over his hand while another pair massaged his shoulders.

"Baby, please don't cry. I know you can handle this. You're strong enough to deal with this. I know you are." Autumn nodded, he seemed to be good these days at telling her just what she needed to get through whatever was bothering her. Whatever it was.

"I'll handle it. I guess I'm going to just go to take a nap. Have fun doing whatever it is that you're doing without me." Mark smiled, a mini-guilt trip.

"Ok Ladybug. Love you."

"You too." Autumn closed her phone and saw Randy standing in the doorway. She frowned and plopped back on her bed. "Didn't your mother teach you not to eavesdrop?" Randy shrugged.

"Nope."

"Well she should have, it's rude." Randy shook it off and walked into her room.

"Wanna talk?"

"No, get out." Randy smiled and Autumn felt her bed sink. Randy lay down next to her on his back with hands behind his head. Autumn sighed. "Was I speaking French?"

"Nope, just nonsense."

"So what do you want? Was I sleeping wrong?"

"Ok, so I deserved that, but you also deserved to be punished."

"Which my dad did, I don't need you helping him."

"Oh really?"

"Yeah really, jerk. I get enough crap from him and John I don't need another person yelling at me." Randy thought for a moment, he hadn't thought of that. Maybe he'd been too harsh.

"Ok, so I am a jerk." Autumn sat up and looked back at him, he was being sincere. He pulled her back down and she laid her head on his armpit. "I'm sorry I was so harsh, I just don't want you to be a hoodlum." Autumn rolled her eyes. Yeah right, like that'd happen.

"So me being punished by my dad wasn't enough?"

"It was I just wanted to drive the point home. You need to know that being a brat is unacceptable."

"And you need to know that my dad does the raising. I need you to be a friend or a brother, or even an uncle, but I DON'T need two fathers!" Randy contemplated for a minute, then spoke.

"Ok." Autumn looked at him.

"Ok?"

"Yup, I won't be another father to you, you're right Mark does well enough. I'll just be your friend."

"More like brother, but still." Randy smiled and kissed her on the top of the head.

"Ok, so we've got about a day and a half to make up for the last five, so what'd you say to watching a marathon of scary movies?" Autumn sat up and turned to him.

"You serious?" He nodded and smiled.

"Score!" She jumped off the bed and ran down the stairs. "I'll get the popcorn!" Randy shook his head as he smiled, well she was back.

Autumn couldn't help but smile broadly, in the last two days her and Randy had an AMAZING time. Watching movies, eating candy, doing pretty much everything Mark would have a cow over. Good times. Last night, they'd made sundaes and ate like pigs leaving much of the mess still on the floor and counters. They'd clean before Mark got home. She glanced at her cellphone 7:41, she shook her head, she could steal another hour or so before Mark got home. Before she knew it she was passed out again.

Mark shook his head at the mess that was laid out in front of him. He'd had to step over wrappers and bottles of all sorts. He knew this was a bad idea, Randy was as responsible as a fish. Randy was sprawled out on the large couch and Autumn was thrown over the love seat. He cleared his throat. First Randy stirred but then turned over. Autumn however knew that throat clear and she fearfully opened her eye. She fell of the couch with a start. "Uh, hi Dad. Um, I was just gonna clean up and yeah." Mark laughed.

"Oh really, cause it looked like you were sleeping to me." Autumn gave a sheepish smile and darted over to Randy shaking him violently.

"Dude, get up." Randy pushed her away and rolled over. She shook him again. "My Dad is here." That got Randy's attention and he rolled over quickly.

"Uh hey Mark." Mark rolled his eyes.

"This place is gross." Randy and Autumn exchanged glances. "So what are we going to do about it?" Again they shared glances. Mark glared at Autumn.

"Uh you clean up here and I'll l get the kitchen." Randy nodded still shaking the cobwebs out of his head. Autumn ran into the kitchen. Mark sighed, this would be eventful. Randy looked at Mark.

"Bring Michelle like you planed?" Mark nodded. Randy took a deep breath…oh and let the fireworks begin.

To Mattagot per usual-only you know why ;)…and of course ALL of my other reviewers!

You guys rock!


	19. Chapter 19

_So, guess who's coming to dinner? That's right the bimbo. Wait, I guess I shouldn't call her that. She's not a bimbo apparently she's my dad's girlfriend…yuck! Words can't describe the grossness that I feel from that. He's so old. Eww. Anyway, it's been two months since he first introduced me to her and boy was that awkward. Seriously, here I am running into the kitchen to clean and find a tall blonde standing there. Like he couldn't' have warned me. He keeps trying to make us bond, but it's like oil and vinegar, try as you may but they just don't mix. It's not like she's mean to me or anything, she's just boring. She knits for petesake! Who does that? Oh well, we're supposed to go on a picnic today, just me and him. It's supposed to be our big thing before he goes into Wrestlemania grind mode for the next two weeks. Needless to say I seriously can't wait. Ever since he introduced her to me she's been here EVERYday. Who knew she lived in Houston too? Grr. She better not show up today. She __**BETTER**__ not or the ish will hit the fan. _

Autumn closed her journal feeling rather happy, which was unusual these days. Most days she found herself alone in her room painting or writing poetry that was reminiscent of her first few months after she was taken from her home. It was weird, it was like she'd come full circle. Oh well, today was going to be a good day, she'd make sure of it. Besides she was tired of calling Randy or John and hearing them laugh at her for being dumb. She really, _really _needed today be a good day. She walked downstairs wearing a tank top and a pair of shorts that came up to mid-thigh. The weatherman had said it was going to be hot, might as well dress accordingly. Of course, Mark was on the phone. Of flipping course! Autumn shook her head, well at least she got him for the day and didn't have to share. This was _her_ day.

"Daddy?" Mark held up a finger and Autumn shook her head, of course she'd come first. She frowned and started grabbing stuff out of the fridge and slamming them on the counter. Mark sighed, she was upset, he hung up the phone and walked over towards her.

"What's wrong with you?" She continued her glare and took a deep breath. Mark decided to choose his battles. "Alright, so we'll be leaving in a few minutes. You might wanna get changed."

"Why?" She looked down at herself, she looked fine.

"Well um, you're not wearing very much." Autumn frowned, but she didn't want to fight today.

"Alright, just let me eat something I'll change." Mark smiled and pulled her close.

"Thanks Ladybug."

"So what are we gonna do today?" Mark shrugged.

"Just a picnic, and I don't know maybe a trip to the stables." Autumn squealed, they hadn't done that since the accident a few months ago. She started bouncing happily around the kitchen. This was going to be so much fun, just her and her daddy. Score! Mark smiled, he was really happy that she was getting back to her normal self. Her moping around was starting to drain him. He'd honestly forgotten how hard it was to keep several people happy. It was definitely a chore. "Hey can you go and get your helmet? We might ride some dirt bikes too." Autumn's eyes grew wide and she nodded happily.

"Yay," she said running off and clapping happily. Mark shook his head, he loved his baby. There was a knock at the door. Mark answered it.

"Hey Baby!" Mark's eyes grew wide and Michelle gave him a kiss before entering.

"Um, what are you doing here?"

"Is that anyway you greet your girlfriend?" Mark shook his head and walked over to his kissing her.

"No it's not, I'm sorry." She smiled.

"I forgive you," she said pulling away.

"Dad, I can't find my helmet but-" Autumn stopped dead in her tracks upon seeing Michelle. Who just happened to be wearing shorts way shorter than Autumn's let's see if Mark would say anything about that.

"Hi Autumn, how are you?" Autumn just stared at Mark speechless.

"What is she doing here?" Mark frowned.

"Manners." Autumn shook her head narrowed her eyes. Mark realized he didn't know why Michelle was here either. Michelle placed her bag on the counter.

"Are you ready?"

"Ready for what?" Michelle looked at him like he had two heads.

"We were supposed to go shopping for you know what today." Mark closed his eyes tightly, he'd forgotten. He pulled Michelle to the side and whispered in her ear.

"Baby, I really need to take Autumn out today, can we do this tomorrow?"

"No, Mark I have to leave for a tour tomorrow and you go on a press junket in case you've forgotten." Autumn watched them go back and forth in hushed tones, she shook her head. She didn't even want to go anymore. She set the cooler on the table started walking upstairs.

"Autumn." She shook her head.

"I um, don't wanna go anymore. So yeah." She turned around and started walking up stairs again. Mark shook his head, he hated disappointing her. Autumn didn't start to cry, she wanted to but for some reason she couldn't. She heard the door close just lay there across her bed for what felt like eternity. She wasn't asleep, just in deep thought. Deep deep thought. This new situation would suck.

Autumn rolled over and felt a hand on her face. She gave a soft smile. "Hi Daddy." Mark couldn't help but smile at her, she had seriously come leaps and bounds in those years since she'd come to him. He sat down on her bed. "So what'd you do today?" She shrugged. "So I guess you'd feel up to going to dinner with me tonight?" Autumn wanted to be excited, but she had to protect herself. She wouldn't get excited until she knew for sure.

"Um," she shifted. "Would it be just you and me?" Mark looked at her, he began to get frustrated. Why'd they both want him alone all the time?

"Well, no not really." Autumn deflated.

"Um would you be mad if I said I didn't wanna go?"

"Then what are you going to eat?" She shrugged.

"I don't know I'll order a pizza or something." Mark frowned.

"No, I'm not gonna let you sit in here all day. Come on, put a jacket on and let's go." Autumn grunted.

"Fine."

Forty-five minutes later the three of them were sitting at a very tense table in a very nice restaurant. Mark was in the between the two with Autumn on his left and Michelle on his right. Michelle was talking a mile a minute and Autumn wouldn't look up from her food. This was quite the situation to be in. Please God let this work.

"So Autumn, how are you liking high school?" Without even looking up from her steak Autumn responded.

"Fine."

"So do when's your next soccer game?"

"Friday."

"So, your dad tells me you like to paint and sculpt. How good are you?" Finally Autumn looked up, with a mask of no emotion.

"Art is subjective. Some say its good others say it's bad." Michelle looked at Mark, maybe this was her break.

"So would you mind showing me some one day? Maybe we could sell some of it." Autumn frowned and Mark winced.

"You don't sell art, you collect it. Only money hoards sell their art." Mark rubbed his eyes, this was bad.

"Oh well, I'm sure we could find somewhere to put it all." She looked up for a moment.

"What's wrong with the attic?" Michelle shrugged.

"Nothing, I just think maybe one day Mark might want to put something else in there." Autumn rolled her eyes and returned her glare to her steak. It was far more interesting than this broad. Michelle sighed, she was really starting not to like this kid. Everyone all over the WWE loved her, why was she being such a brat to her?

"So Autumn what do you want to do when you get older?" Autumn rolled her eyes.

"Well, I'd like to fly a unicorn but it seems that they're too expensive so I'll just settle for horse jockey." Mark grunted, attitude was one but outright rudeness wouldn't be tolerated.

"Autumn Mackenzie."

"Mark William." Autumn laughed at her own joke, this table was entirely too serious and boy was it draining. "Oh wait, Old Deadie!" She slammed her fist on the table in a fit of laughter causing her fork to fly across the table and land in Michelle's soup. The soup splattered all across Michelle's cream colored blouse.

"It's ruined!" Autumn stared at Michelle with her mouth open in shock. She hadn't meant to do that.

"I'm uh I'm sorry." Michelle glared at her but didn't say anything. Now Autumn had a reason to stare at her steak. She could feel Mark's glare boring into her skull. Great, now she was in trouble.

The rest of dinner was a blur, Autumn refused to look up and Michelle stopped trying to talk to her. Autumn felt horrible, she hadn't meant to ruin her blouse. That was just wrong. Messing with her mind maybe, ruin her outfit, no. Autumn had standards. This whole day was turning out to be a sucky event one failure after another.

Mark and Michelle walked into the house first followed by Autumn with her spirits still low. She started walking to go to her room but stopped when Mark spoke. "Apologize." Autumn looked at him.

"Already told her I was sorry." Mark frowned. Autumn rolled her eyes and looked at Michelle then plastered a fake smile on her face. "Fine, I'm sorry that I _accidentally _spilled soup on you." Michelle nodded. Autumn turned to Mark. "Happy?" She spat as she turned to go back up the stairs.

"You're grounded." Autumn stopped mid step and laughed, was this chick really trying her right now?

"Um I'm sorry, only he can do that. You know, him Mark, my dad." Autumn rolled her eyes and turned back around.

"Oh really because Mark and I are a unified unit. We're getting married." Autumn felt the air leave her lungs, married? She turned to Mark with glassy eyes.

"Is this true?" Mark sighed, he didn't wanna tell her like this.

"Well uh yeah it is." Autumn shook her head in disbelief. "Ladybug, I—"

"Save it, I don't care what you have to say." Mark sighed, he didn't mean to hurt her, this whole day had gotten out of control.

"Baby." Autumn cast one last sad glance at him and ascended the stairs.

She walked into her room and closed the door, she didn't even wanna cry. She knew she should, but she didn't. It was like she was numb all over again. This was a new pain, it wasn't like Trian or Sammy , this was way more intense. He'd actually planned his life without her. Jerk. Autumn grabbed her journal and started scribbling in it, she needed to get her thought s out.

Mark was downstairs pacing, he really didn't want to hurt her that way. She was his baby, his first priority, or at least she was. He knew he should have waited to start bringing Michelle around. Great, he probably had his baby crying upstairs. Why'd he have to be a jerk like that? Making her apologize again, that was uncalled for. He sighed, time to go console her. As he got closer to her room he heard something unfamiliar…nothing. He knocked, no response. Well at least that was usual. He opened the door to find her sitting by her bed, headphones on, and journaling. That was definitely weird. She looked up at him with no emotion and went back to journaling. This was so very weird, he'd expected her to be in full out hysterics by now.

"Autumn." She rolled her eyes and took her headphones off, but stayed in the same position. While raising her eyebrow she answered.

"Yes?"

"I wanna talk to you." She shrugged.

"Talk then." Mark furrowed his brow, she was acting so different.

"Well, um how do you feel about Michelle?" Autumn laughed.

"She's great!"

"No really, I want you to be okay with this." Autumn tried to stifle a giggle. "What's so funny?"

"If you wanted me to be okay with this you would have told me eight months ago when you started dating her." She laughed again. "Yeah right, you could care less about how this affects me." Mark was taken aback. He wasn't used to her being this articulate with her emotions.

"I do want you to be okay with this. That's why I'm sitting here talking to you."

"Yeah right, you're trying to ease your conscience cause you felt bad about making me apologize again." Mark had to smile at that, the kid has his number. Mark went to reach for her hand but Autumn pulled away. "Not unh, I don't need you consoling me. Hands off the merchandise sparky. " Mark looked at her incredulously.

"Ladybug I—" She shook her head.

"No, Ladybug died when you put that ring on Michelle's' finger without consulting me." Mark was starting to get frustrated, he stood up.

"First of all I'm the adult, I don't need to consult my child in decisions about my life." Autumn stood up in return.

"Well I think you do, especially when this child is all you have in your pathetic life." Mark started to chew the inside of his jaw.

"Kill that tone, Autumn."

"Kill that selfishness Mark." Mark stared at her, who was this child? "Oh what's wrong? Not used to strong Autumn? Well get used to it, because weak Autumn Lewis is dead and strong Autumn Calaway is here and she's not backing down to anyone." Mark continued to stare. "You wanted a strong kid, well you got one. Deal with it." Autumn brushed past him and down the stairs. Mark followed her. Autumn stopped as she saw Michelle in between her and the door.

"Where are you going?" Autumn glared at her.

"None of your business. Move." The Viper in Autumn returned and her brown eyes were full of blaze. Michelle moved but Mark grabbed Autumn's arm before she could open the door.

"I thought we agreed that running wasn't the answer." Autumn sighed.

"Who said I was running? It looked to me like I was merely walking." Mark rolled his eyes. He didn't even say anything to her before pointing toward the stairs. Autumn shrugged and walked towards the stairs. Who cares? Mark watched her walk off, this was going to be a battle for sure.

Thanks to EVERYONE of you for reviewing. I really appreciate it.

Shoutouts go to Takersfan and Mattagott.

Thanks guys and lemme know!


	20. Chapter 20

Autumn sat there staring at the skyline outside the window. It was Wrestlemania weekend. So far it had been a blast. She'd pretty much ignored her dad and Michelle and chose to hang out with Randy, John, or Paul (HHH). For the most part, the whole week had been awesome, well minus the fact that her and Mark had barely spent any time together. She shrugged it off. She was supposed to be getting ready for the Hall of Fame Ceremony, but she got a bad case of the 'I don't feel like goings'. Maybe she could fake a fever or something. Only problem was that Michelle for as annoying as she was still VERY smart. Every time Autumn tried to hide or get out of something she'd call her on it. It was terrible. Autumn looked up as Michelle entered the room. "Hi, Autumn."

"Hi," she said reluctantly. Mark had been on her to answer Michelle when she spoke to her. In his words 'respect her like you respect me." Yeah like that would be easy. Michelle was dressed in a long green evening gown and looked quite beautiful.

"Hey you need to get dressed. Mark's going to be here in a few minutes and then we need to be ready to be in the limo in about twenty minutes. So come on." Autumn finding herself feeling more introverted and separated from her former bubbly self. It was like her bubbly nature was replaced with a cold angry demeanor that rivaled Randy's Viper-like persona. It was so bad that Randy and John started calling her 'Baby Viper'.

"I'm not going." Michelle took a deep breath, she kept trying but Autumn was _really_ starting to get on her nerves. She walked over towards her.

"You really need to get over whatever is bothering you, because this is a big night for this business and for your father. You're going, you're gonna put on a dress, and you're going to put a smile on your face." Autumn rolled her eyes.

"No, I'm not. I'm sick." Michelle narrowed her eyes.

"Look Autumn, I'm really trying to like you here, but you're not helping me. Don't piss me off, just get dressed."

"I'm not kidding, get up." Autumn stayed where she was and looked at Michelle with a deep disapproval. Autumn laid back on the bed sighing loudly. Michelle had enough. She walked over and grabbed Autumn by her upper arms pulling her into a standing position. Autumn started struggling, but Michelle was stronger than she was. It was no use.

"Let me go," Autumn said through gritted teeth.

"I will when you start getting dressed like I say." Something in Autumn was snapping, somewhere deep inside something was returning that she hadn't used in years.

"Let me go!" The scream could have pierced anyone's ears. Michelle finally released her, but before Autumn knew what happened, she'd dug down deep and released a goop of saliva right under Michelle's eyes.

"You little!"

"Autumn Mackenzie Calaway!" Autumn's eyes darted towards the door and she saw an uber pissed off Mark stalking towards her. Her anger left and she felt like the seven year old girl again who endured abuse every day. The uncertainty, the despair…the fear. Her breath caught in her throat. She backed away. Mark grabbed her by the arm. "What has gotten into you?" She couldn't speak. "Why would you do that?" His bellowing could shake the ground. She couldn't take it, her resolve was breaking. "Huh?" The walls were crumbling. "Well?" Years of therapy and counseling gone, Autumn regressed into that frail girl from seven years go. She fell down backwards on her hands and started backing away violently.

"Please, please don't hurt me." She finally hit a wall so she turned directions and continued backing into the corner near the bed. Her breathing was rapid and tears were streaming down her face. "I didn't mean to!" Mark watched on in horror, she'd never reacted like this. "Please don't hurt me. Please." Autumn had pulled her knees toward her chest and was rocking herself while singing a random song. Mark was paralyzed with fear, what had he done?

:D Just a sampler of what's to come.

Please keep reviewing love it guys!

Shoutouts to EVERYONE who reviewed. Love you guys!


	21. Chapter 21

It had been three days since Autumn's 'break down' and it was killing Mark. What had he done to his baby? She wasn't speaking and she gasped at the touch of anyone other than Randy or John. It was like her mind was preventing her from getting hurt. Plus, her nightmares were returning every night with a vengeance. It was to the point where she could not get more than a few minutes of sleep here and there. When she was awake, her eyes were bloodshot and her skin was pale, it was like she was a ghost. Even though Mark was trying everything he could to get her to trust him, it was no use. Anytime he came near her she would recoil and pull herself into a ball. Needless to say he was scared out of his mind.

They were sitting in their room, with Autumn on her bed and Mark staring out at the sky. Nothing seemed to satisfy him like thinking. Plus, he wasn't sleeping very well himself, none of them were. Usually before this Mark would console her, but now John or Randy had to be on call because she wouldn't let Mark anywhere near her. He made him feel so helpless, his baby needed him and he couldn't be anywhere near her to help. He heard a crash and turned around. Autumn had been trying to get the new jug of juice off the top of the fridge when apparently it had slipped and splattered all over the floor. She looked down at the floor and then at Mark and started backing away. Mark stood up. "Autumn, it's ok. I'll clean it up." She shook her head.

"No." Mark's eyes narrowed he knew he'd heard it, but it was so faint that he really couldn't be sure.

"No it's ok, I'll do it. Don't be scared." Autumn stood back and watched Mark clean up her mess. This was new. Trent was never that nice to her. She shook her head, that wasn't Trent, it was Mark. It didn't matter they were the same. Autumn shook her head and walked back over to her bed. She sat down, and started reading through her journal. Rarely did she reread her entries, but for some reason she couldn't help herself. "Autumn." She looked up to see Mark holding a glass of juice in front of her. Autumn looked that the juice and then back at him and then did it again. She grabbed the juice out of his hand and set it on the nightstand. Mark sighed, little steps.

About an hour later Michelle walked into the room. Apparently she had a key. Glancing at Autumn she walked over and kissed Mark. "How's she doing?" Mark shrugged.

"About the same." Michelle looked sympathetically at Autumn, she never meant to make this happen, the kid was just being so difficult.

"Maybe I should try to talk to her."

"I don't think that's such a good idea." Mark watched on holding his breath as Michelle walked towards Autumn.

"Autumn," she said softly to no response. Michelle walked closer and touched Autumn's shoulder causing a loud gasp and a drastic recoil. The door opened and Autumn ran into the person's arms. John looked at Mark with questioning eyes. Mark glanced at Michelle who was standing there with her mouth hanging open. John shook his head and rubbed Autumn's back.

"It's ok Sweetie." In that instant something clicked in Autumn's head….John. She liked John. Autumn kept her face buried in John's chest, but she wasn't crying. Mark glanced at Michelle and she exited the room. Mark looked at John and made a motion where he moved his hand to his mouth reminiscent of eating with a fork then pointed at Autumn. John nodded. "Hey Autumn you wanna go get something to eat?" She pulled back and looked up at him before nodding. Mark shook his head as he watched them walk off, this was too much. He sat down on his bed and buried his face in his hands. He heard the door open and close…Michelle.

"Baby." Mark said nothing but pulled her into his lap. They sat there for a while in silence until Michelle spoke again. "What are we going to do about her?" Mark took a deep breath.

"I really don't know." Michelle nodded.

"I was thinking maybe we could get her some help."

"Well she already has a therapist, I just need to make another appointment. It works pretty well if I keep it consistent."

"I was um thinking more than bi-weekly therapy visits, you know it seems like she needs more help." Mark frowned and pushed Michelle of him.

"You want me to put my daughter in an institution?"

"Not an institution just some place where she can get the help she needs." Mark shook his head.

"No, not going to happen." Michelle frowned.

"Mark, she needs help."

"And she's going to get it, but I won't give up on my daughter."

"And that means what? You know I thought spouses got first consideration. If we're getting married then my opinion needs to be heard." Mark frowned, but didn't say anything. "You do want to get married don't you?" Mark sighed.

"You know I love you, I'm just preoccupied." Michelle nodded, as much as she loved Mark there was no way he'd ever choose her over Autumn. None. She didn't say anything she just turned to leave. Mark groaned loudly, why was life so complicated?

John was at the small diner staring intently at Autumn, he wasn't sure but he thought she was perfectly fine. She wasn't acting at all like she did over the last three days. Something was up, but he didn't want to push it. She'd reveal herself in her own time. They ate the rest of dinner quietly and then John took her back towards Mark's room. He saw that there was no one in the room. John frowned, being alone was hard for her. "You want me to stay?" Autumn shook her head and gave John a hug. John smiled, he knew she was back. He kissed her forehead and closed the door. "Lock both locks." Autumn sighed and nodded.

Autumn fell asleep soon after that, but woke up from a bone chilling nightmare. She really wanted someone to hug her, but she was alone…always alone. Sweat was flowing from her brow and she sighed. Maybe she'd go exploring the hotel, after all there was no way she was getting back to sleep now. She was still dressed in a tank top and jeans. Autumn slid into her flip flops and walked out of the room. She looked around glancing at whatever was in her path. It really was a beautiful hotel with chandeliers and other expensive fixtures all around.

Mark stared at the stupid glass in front him, he'd made a promise to not drink anymore, but he wasn't sure if he could keep his promise. He'd really damaged her this time, more than before. He'd only scared her that time, this time he caused a major problem deep within her mind. What was he thinking? He had to do what was best for her, not himself, but her. He made up his mind.

Autumn walked into the restaurant and it was dark, maybe that would be a good thing. She noticed a bar tender talking to someone, but she couldn't make out who it was. Wait? Deep gravelly voice…Mark! Why was he at a bar? Had she driven him to drinking? Slowly she walked towards him. Mark sighed and picked up the glass, he'd been battling with it for an hour but it was finally about to win.

"I knew you'd never change." Mark set the glass down and turned to his right. Autumn was sitting on the barstool next to him glaring disgustedly at him. Mark was dumbfounded that was her first sentence to him in almost 72 hours.

"Autumn," he gasped out. She raised her eyebrow.

"Were you expecting the Easter bunny?" Mark couldn't speak, words were trying to come out of his throat but none made it. Autumn? She grabbed the glass out of his hand and held it in front of him. "Choose right her and right now which one you want more, me or this glass." Mark looked at her. "I promise you, if you take one sip of that I will walk out that door and you'll never hear from me again. I won't go through this again." Mark frowned and snatched the glass out of her hand and slid it back down to the bartender. Autumn gave a soft smile. "Good." They sat there in silence for a while before either one of them spoke again.

"Are you ok now?"

"Does it sound like I'm ok?" Mark frowned, at least her mouth was back.

"You know I never meant to hurt you."

"That's what you always say."

"And it's always the truth. If I would have known you'd react that way I would never have done that." Autumn turned to face him fully.

"You know that I hate being touched or grabbed. What would make you think that doing it wouldn't cause some trauma?" Mark sighed and shrugged.

"I don't know. I didn't think-"

"You're right, you didn't think. You didn't think to ask me why I spat on little miss perfect, or even give me a chance to explain. You didn't think, just like always."

"You're right."

"I know I am." The silence overtook them again. Mark took a deep breath.

"So why'd you spit on her?"

"Because she was holding me by the arms." Mark grunted, he knew that'd trigger all sorts of things. She hated being restricted…especially in the arms. Mark went to wrap his arm around her, but Autumn stopped his arm and shook her head. "Don't think you're off the hook like that. Keep your hands to yourself." Mark sighed, at least she was speaking coherently.

"Alright, let's get you up to bed." Autumn rolled her eyes.

"I'm almost fifteen, I sleep when I want." Mark frowned.

"No, you sleep when I tell you. Now let's go." Autumn frowned, she liked it better when he was at her beckon call. Mark paid the bartender and escorted Autumn back to the room. "So you wanna tell me why you were roaming around the hotel alone at this time of the night?"

"Couldn't sleep." Mark sighed, he was definitely calling the therapist when they got back home. He opened the door to the room to see Michelle sitting there on the bed. Upon seeing her Autumn frowned and made a spin to leave the room only to have the door be held shut by Mark.

"Nope," was all he said. Michelle stood up but Mark shook his head. "Both of you take a seat." Both women glared at Mark. "Please, we need to talk." Autumn sat on her bed and Michelle sat on Mark's. Mark pulled a chair over from the table and sat down in the middle of them. "Ok we need to get some things out in the open. Autumn spitting on Michelle was unacceptable, got it?" Autumn nodded.

"Yes sir." He looked at Michelle.

"Michelle, I've told you a bit about Autumn's past but not enough. You need to know that grabbing her by the arms triggers something in her."

"Don't make excuses for her."

"I'm not, it's the truth. Just trust me." Michelle nodded, and Mark looked at Autumn urging her with his eyes.

"I'm sorry for spitting on you." Michelle looked at Autumn it was clear that she was only saying that to keep her father happy. Apology wasn't accepted.

"Alright with that being said, you two need to hear something." Both women looked on intently. "Michelle I love you, but you have to know that Autumn is my daughter and she will always have my heart. No matter what." Autumn smiled. Tell her. "And Autumn, Michelle is going to be my wife. I love her so I need you to realize that Daddy needs to be happy too." Autumn frowned and Michelle was smiling wildly. Mark knelt down in front of Autumn. "Can you do that for me?" Autumn sighed, he was putting her on the spot.

"I'll try." Mark kissed her forehead.

"That's all I can ask." Michelle looked on and rolled her eyes, the kid was so spoiled. "Alright you need to get ready for bed." Autumn sighed but did what she was told anyway. When they were alone Michelle looked at Mark.

"That's it, you're just going to send her to bed like nothing happened? She spat on me Mark!" Mark rolled his eyes.

"She's already been punished…did you not see that little girl who was here for the last three days?"

"Mark, she's not a little girl. She's about to be fifteen. That means learner's permit, boys, and other crap. If's she thinks spitting on me is acceptable then God help us when she's sixteen and can leave the house when she wants. Who knows she might run me over?" Mark sighed, she was so dramatic.

"She knows spitting on you is unacceptable."

"Oh really?"

"Yes really, I just told her that it was." Michelle put her hand on her hip.

"Mark I'm going to say this once. Disrespect starts now, if you let it continue she's never going to respect me. Every time she does something you say 'stop' or 'don't do that' or 'apologize'. Mark, it's been months, if she doesn't know right from wrong by now, she's never going to know it. You need to do something." Mark grunted, maybe she was right.

"You're right, I'll talk to her." He turned towards the bathroom. "Autumn." Upon being called Autumn exited the bathroom in a pair of shorts and a tank top with her hair in two braids. Mark motioned for her to sit, which she did. "We uh, we've been talking and you need to be punished for how you treated Michelle."

"I need to be punished? Mark, she sent me into flashbacks!" Mark grunted.

"First of all, its 'dad' and second of all it was after you were being a brat." Autumn began to scowl and shook her head.

"This isn't fair." Michelle looked at Mark, Autumn was proving her right. Mark looked at his young daughter and took a deep breath. He was going to hate this.

"Autumn Mackenzie, until you can drop that attitude and respect us _both_ as your parents you are grounded from everything." Autumn looked at him like he'd lost his mind. "That means no painting, no sculpting, no drawing, no soccer, and no journaling." Autumn wanted to cry, all of this because Michelle had attacked her…real fair.

"That's not fair! If I can't play soccer they'll kick me off the team! I'll never be able to get back on." Michelle shrugged while Mark looked torn. "Please don't do this." Autumn had tears in her eyes, Mark knew how much it meant to her to be the only freshmen on the varsity team. It took everything he had to shake his head.

"I'm sorry, Autumn." She shook her head and glared at Michelle, this was all her fault. Autumn stood up and started walking towards the door. "Where are you going?"

"To find John or Randy at least they'll listen." Mark sighed, he was tired of her always running.

"You're not going anywhere but to bed." Autumn looked at Michelle, look at her trying to enforce rules. Autumn glanced at Mark.

"You heard her, go to bed." Autumn shook her head and closed the door. She walked over to her bed and flopped down on it dramatically. Mark and Michelle talked for a while and Autumn just lay there. This would suck. She loved soccer, she needed it. It was her only other solace besides art. She _needed _it. Her dislike of Michelle was starting to grow deeper. She heard the door close and heard Mark's heavy footsteps walking towards her. "Autumn."

"Just leave me alone." Mark sighed.

"Autumn." Autumn rolled over.

"Look I don't want to say anything to upset you or Princess Barbie. So please just leave me alone." Mark looked into her eyes and saw pain and confusion. He nodded and tried to kiss her forehead. "Don't," she said as she turned over. Mark stood there watching her, he hoped he was doing the right thing.

;D Hoped you liked it…more coming soon!

Thanks for reviewing guys, I love em.

Poll…Should Autumn and Michelle patch it up? Yes or no w/a reason.


	22. Chapter 22

Autumn rolled over a few hours later and glanced at her cellphone: 12:45. Slowly and quietly she rolled out of bed and stepped into the hall. She needed to talk to someone. Her first call was to Randy, but of course he didn't answer. So she dialed John who thank God picked up the phone.

"Hey Mini-Me what's up?" Autumn took a deep breath.

"Can you come talk to me? I uh need someone." John knew by the tone in her voice that she wasn't exaggerating.

"Yeah, where are you?"

"Outside my dad's room."

"I'll be right there, don't move." Autumn agreed and hung up. She knew John would come. A few minutes later, John walked up to her smiling. She got up and engulfed him a hug. "What's wrong, Sweetie?" Autumn took a deep breath and laid out the line of events for him. When she was done John sighed and pulled her close. They were now sitting down just outside the door. Autumn laid her head on his shoulder.

"I'm sorry I called you so late."

"Naw, baby its fine. I wasn't sleeping yet." Autumn took a deep breath.

"Do you think I'm overreacting?" John had to take a minute on that one, he did agree with her partially, but he could see Michelle's side too.

"Not really, I think you have a right to feel the way you do." Autumn nodded.

"Thanks I'm glad someone understands."

"Woah, hold on there. I wasn't done. I agree with you on some things, but not on others. She's your dad's girlfriend and you need to respect her." Great, John had joined in on the broken record club.

"You sound like my dad and Uncle Paul." John laughed.

"When'd he become Uncle Paul?"

"When he let me ride around in his tour bus. That thing was sick! Well and plus he's too old to be anything else." John laughed.

"So you're okay though? I don't have to worry about you going back in that hole?" She shook her head.

"I hope not. That was really scary, it was like I was back in the past and it was happening all over again. It's scary enough stuck in the past, I don't need it in the present." She shifted. "Thank you for being here." John shrugged.

"No need for thanks, it's how I show my love for you." At that moment Autumn truly realized what love is…thanks John. John took a deep breath. "When did you well you know, um come back?" Autumn sighed.

"When you hugged me earlier. I don't know it was like something clicked." John nodded he'd expected as much.

"Um, I know this might freak you out, but do you mind telling me why you reacted that way?" Autumn took a deep breath, if there was ever anyone she could tell it would be John or Randy. She shifted slightly.

"Well, um my mom's boyfriend um Trent was not nice, not to me anyway. I don't remember exactly when he moved in, but as far back as I can remember he was around." She got a spaced out look on her face and then shook her head violently. "I'm going to spare you the gruesome details of most of it. Well um, he was really scary and he'd beat me for pretty much anything, but there was this one time in particular that won't seem to go away." John held her tighter as he saw her skin start to pale. She started fidgeting with her fingers and staring at them. "I was playing quietly in a corner near the TV, when one of his friends asked me for a drink. I was supposed to do whatever they asked, I was like a servant for them." She got a very calloused and hard look on her face for a moment and then returned to her somber state." I guess I moved to slow because before I could get up he grabbed me firmly by my arm and started squeezing, really _really_ hard. His breath reeked of alcohol and cigarettes." She closed her eyes. "I could feel the bones shifting and snapping. It was excruciating pain. I um I guess because I was crying too loud or begging too much that he decided it'd be okay to do the same thing to the other arm." She paused taking a deep breath." I don't know what happened inside of me, but I began to hate him and along with everyone and everything in my life. I just wanted it to stop, so I spat on him. That was a bad idea, because within seconds Trent was storming towards me. He beat me. I mean really hit me." She stopped and rolled up her sleeve. "I um still have a scar from the switch, it's really faint but still there." She shrugged and returned to her normal self. "I um guess I just snapped. It was all too similar and I guess my mind reverted. I hope it never happens again." John sighed and shook his head, how could a child be put through that? They sat in silence for a long while before either of them spoke again.

"You don't have to be afraid of that happening ever again." She nodded.

"I know 'cause you and Randy won't let it." John looked at her.

"Mark won't either." She laughed.

"Sure." John just shook his head and pulled her close. She'd divulged to him something only she knew and that was a special feat in itself. Whether he wanted to be or not, they were forever tied by a special bond. A bond to never to be broken.

Later that night Mark woke up from a restless sleep. He lay in the pitch black thinking. Autumn hadn't really done anything to deserve that stiff a punishment. Sure she'd back talked and spat on Michelle, but indefinite grounding over that? She was right, it wasn't fair. He knew she was probably over there crying and didn't know what to do. Should he console her? Should he leave her there? He stood up slowly and turned on the lights. Where was Autumn? Panic over took him. He checked all around the bed and the room. She was nowhere to be found. He grabbed his cellphone and stepped into the hall, he let out a deep breath when he saw her asleep on John's shoulder. Autumn woke up startled and her sudden movements woke John up too. "Sorry, I was just worried when I couldn't find you." Autumn stretched and John glanced at his watch.

"Woah, it's like 3 in the morning. Time to jet. Bye little one." He kissed Autumn of the head. He rushed off down the hallway. Then turned around. "Hey call me if you need anything, ok?' Autumn nodded. "Love you."

"Love you too." Mark frowned, she rarely ever said 'love you' and here she did it without a second thought. He sighed.

"We need to talk, Ladybug." Autumn narrowed her eyes.

"I thought I told you she died."

"Fine, Autumn, we need to talk." She shrugged.

"About what?"

"Well about earlier, I uh think I overreacted."

"You think?"

"Yes I think. I thought about it and you don't deserve all of that. I think I'm thinking two days without your iPod will suffice. "Autumn looked at him, he was trying.

"I guess," she said as she walked into the room. Mark shook his head. Boy she was difficult to deal with. He watched as Autumn walked into the room and returned to her bed. Clearly she was sad, you could tell just by looking at her. He had to know what was up. Mark closed his eyes in deep thought and was startled by what was in front of him when he opened it. Autumn was standing right in front of him.

"Can I help you?" Autumn took a deep breath and looked at the floor.

"I um just wanted to thank you for rethinking my punishment. I know it wasn't easy." Mark looked at her. Her frame was trembling slightly and her shoulders were slumped. He took his index finger and lifted her chin to face him.

"You're quite welcome, Lady uh Autumn." She gave him a soft smile and turned around walking back towards her bed. Mark watched her and shook his head. "Autumn Mackenzie." She turned around.

"Yes?"

"I love you."

"Love you too." He smiled, it wasn't everything but it was more than enough to let him sleep soundly that night.

The next morning, they were ready to head out. Both of them had sleep peacefully and now everyone was wide awake for the flight back to Houston. It was just the three of them, Mark, Autumn, and Michelle. Autumn was still upset over not having her iPod, but hey it was better than the latter. Michelle however was highly upset about the situation and had let her opinion be known...very loudly. Mark sighed, why did he do this to himself?

Autumn was sitting at the airport playing her PSP with her ear buds in. Hey adults didn't need to know just how many devices could serve as an mp3 player. She was quite happy with herself as she played the racing game. For some reason she really seemed to like those. Autumn jumped as Michelle tapped her shoulder and her earbud fell out. Michelle frowned upon hearing the music blaring out of it.

"I thought we said no iPod."

"Does this look like an iPod? Nope, didn't think so." Autumn went to put her earbud back in but was stopped.

"Don't get smart." Autumn rolled her eyes and put her earbud back in and resumed the game. No more than five minutes later was it ripped out again. She sighed and glared at Michelle…no wait it was Mark. A very irritated Mark.

"So what's this I hear about your game being an iPod alternative?" Autumn said nothing and looked at her hands. "Well?" Autumn continued to stare at her hands. Mark sighed and stuck his hand out. Autumn uncoiled the game from around her wrist and handed it to him. Mark shook his head. "Why do you try to play me?" Autumn frowned, parents. Mark glanced at Michelle and whispered in Autumn's ear. "What do you say when we get home that we go out for a ride on the chopper and maybe I don't know some star gazing?" Autumn got a small smile on her face.

"Just you and me?" Mark nodded to which Autumn's smile grew drastically wider than he'd seen it in months. For some reason it clicked in his head…all she wanted was him. Wow. He was an idiot. He pulled her close.

"Autumn, I'm having this problem." She looked at him. "Well see, I keep wanting to call you Ladybug, but you won't let me." He felt Autumn stiffen. "So I need a new name for you, but I can't think of one." Autumn looked at him and thought for a moment.

"Kitten." Mark smiled and kissed her forehead.

"I knew you'd come up with something." She nodded and did something very unusual. She reached up and kissed him on his cheek. "Well what did I do to deserve that?" Autumn smiled.

"Not be a jerk." Mark smiled with relief.

"I'm glad to have you back Kitten." Autumn smiled, _that_ would definitely take some getting used to.

For the most part the flight was uneventful well minus Michelle poking herself into every SINGLE conversation that Autumn tried to initiate with Mark. Needless to say by the time they were in the limo heading home Autumn was pissed enough to want to talk to no one…including Mark. Autumn didn't know why but Michelle…was leaving! That made Autumn over the moon with joy. She wanted to do a happy dance but thought better of it. Autumn couldn't help but smile as Michelle pulled out of the driveway and down the road. Yay, she thought to herself.

"Why do you look so sad?" Autumn turned around and glared at Mark who was smirking. He handed her, her yellow and navy blue helmet. "Let's roll." Autumn giggled happily and practically ran over to the bike. She loved the freedom that came with traveling down the open road and the wind in her hair. The openness gave her an odd sense of security, she could see how Mark had been so in love with the lifestyle. Mark glance in his mirror and could see Autumn's ear to ear smile. He loved his baby so much. He literally had spent endless nights agonizing over the pained he seemed to always inadvertently cause her. He was glad that she was back. Thank God for that.

Mark parked the bike and helped Autumn off the back. "So did you have fun?" She nodded vigorously.

"I love how it feels."

"Me too." Autumn looked around.

"So where are we?" Mark smiled.

"Somewhere." Autumn rolled her eyes as Mark grabbed her hand they started walking. They were in some random patch of trees. Mark didn't say anything for a long while they were just sort of reacquainting themselves with each other. Finally after about fifteen minutes he stopped. He turned and looked at her square in the eyes making Autumn slightly uncomfortable. "I uh I've been thinking for a while." Autumn looked at him hoping he'd continue. He wrapped his arm around her shoulder "I want you to know that I'll never do anything that I don't think is in your best interest. Well not on purpose." She smiled at him softly. "I uh know you don't like Michelle, but I do. I _really_ do." She frowned, of course this special outing had to be about Michelle. She wanted to cry it was like she wasn't good enough anymore. "So for me can you please just try to get along with her? I know she's a bit hard to deal with but I think if you gave it a shot you two could be friends." Autumn was sullen, at this point she'd tell him whatever he wanted to hear.

"Sure thing, just for you I'll try." Mark smiled at her.

"Let's go look at the stars." Autumn nodded. Star gazing was supposed to be fun, but it wasn't on this night. Once again Michelle had ruined a perfectly good night with her and Mark. A-Freaking-Gain!

Haha thanks for all of the feedback…

I HAVE to give shoutouts to Souless666 for that in depth answer to the poll. You rock!

…as always thanks for the love.

Oh, btw THANKS for helping me reach 100+reviews on this story! It really means a lot.


	23. Chapter 23

_6 months later_

_Well this is bittersweet. This is my first entry after turning fifteen and I'm torn. One part of me is ecstatic over my party. Everyone was there by the grace of God. Mark, John, Randy, Uncle Paul, Uncle Glen, Hannah plus all my friends, and even Trian! I was so happy to see him. We still aren't ultra-tight, but we're building a relationship. I can't believe how big he's gotten. He's eight now and looks oddly similar to me except I have softer features. I do plan on visiting him more often though. I want us to be close even if we have different fathers. After all what is family really? Anyway, with all that happening, it's probably confusing as to why I'm torn. Well here it is….those two douchebags are getting married this weekend! Seriously two days after my birthday party? They say it's so that everyone doesn't have to make two trips, but I know it's because she wants to upstage me. You think things would have gotten better between us but it hasn't. She's still overreacting to everything that I did. Whether it was missing a curfew or not doing homework everything was a big event for her. I don't even want to talk about her anymore. As for Mark, well we're doing better. He's still trying to do things with me but it just doesn't seem to happen as often as it's used to. No matter what he's supposed to do with me if something comes up with her he jumps. I know it's probably wrong, but I can help but to think that if it came down to it that he'd choose her over me. I miss my dad. I just really miss him. Nothing is the same. This sucks._

Autumn was sad, she was staring at her hands while sitting on her bed. Tomorrow was the wedding and she was supposed to be asleep but she wasn't. There had been a pre-wedding party earlier downstairs, but Autumn didn't feel like partying. She quietly excused herself and went upstairs to her room hoping to get away from everyone. She needed time to think. Tomorrow would change the rest of her life forever. It wouldn't be just her and Mark anymore, it'd be her, Mark, and the dramatic witch. She hated pity parties, but she couldn't help wallowing in her own despair. This would suck!

"Autumn." She looked up and gave a soft smile….Randy and John.

"I thought you guys left." They walked in and shook their heads.

"Naw, we were on the back talking, besides we figured you might need a friend."

"Thanks guys, but I'm fine. Really."

"Yeah sure." Autumn rolled her eyes as Randy came and sat down on the bed next to her while John pulled over her desk chair.

"So what's goin on?" Autumn sighed.

"This will suck." John smiled.

"I know, but you can handle it."

"No somehow I don't think so." Randy pulled her close.

"You know that um if you need to, you can always come and stay with me. I'd love to have you." John shot him a look.

"Dude," he said with furrowed eyebrows. Randy held up his hands. Autumn shook her head as she watched them have a silent conversation amongst themselves.

"Guys relax, I'm not going to run away, I just wish she would." John sighed with relief. Mark would kill Randy for putting that thought in her head. "Um if you don't mind can you leave please, I wanna be alone." They both had their suspicions but didn't say anything. After each of them gave her a hug they walked out of the room. Autumn sighed and fell back. "Alone finally!" Too bad her silence only lasted for about ten minutes.

"Hey Kitten time for bed." Autumn frowned, even at fifteen he still regulated her sleeping habits. "Hey don't look like that. We've got a big day tomorrow."

"Yeah I can't wait." Mark frowned, she was really starting to get to him. He had tried to be patient he really had, but she was on his last nerve.

"What's wrong with you?" Autumn scoffed.

"Now you care all of a sudden?" Mark grunted.

"I thought we were past this. Why can't you just be happy for me? I've sacrificed time and time again for you!" Autumn shook her head angrily.

"Who asked you to? Look I never asked to live with you. I never asked you to be my father. I never asked for you to make me love you. I never asked you for anything!"

"You know who asked me? Sammy." Autumn was seething, that was low. Mark shook his head, he hadn't been this angry in a long time. "God only knows why I said yes." That caught Autumn's attention. She looked at him with a mixture of emotions.

"Oh really? Well you know what? Forget it! Marry your slut and leave me alone!" Mark knew better than to grab her but he was shaking with anger.

"How dare you talk about her like that?"

"Yeah of course, stick up for her. God knows why you should be concerned with me, I'm just your daughter. Oh wait, that's right, I'm not. I'm some battered orphan that you took pity on!" Mark sighed, he knew not to talk to her when she was this angry. He pointed to the bed.

"Get in the bed and stay there. We'll talk later." Autumn shook her head.

"No I don't have to listen to you." Mark took a deep breath, he was trying. He really was.

"Yes you do! I'm your father!" Mark was trying to reign in his temper.

"As far as I'm concerned I have no father! You're dead to me!" She brushed past him and into her bathroom in the hallway slamming the door. She slid down the door and pulled her knees to her chest. Nothing had ever cut her that deep. **NOTHING.**

She stayed there for a long while, but shockingly Mark never came to check on her. She scoffed of course he wouldn't, Michelle probably needed a shoulder rub. Autumn was so sad, she wanted to cry but didn't. For some strange reason she just couldn't. Who knew that the last three years would lead to this? Who knew? Before she knew it, she'd fallen asleep on the floor.

Mark was sitting on the edge of his bed with his head buried in his hands. Why'd he have to go and say that? He sighed, he'd cut her again with his words. He was really starting to loath that part of himself. Michelle was probably out somewhere partying up with her girls and here he was worried about Autumn. Something didn't seem right about that scenario. He shook his head. Maybe he'd just give her some time to think and then he'd talk to her. It'd always worked before.

Autumn woke up with her legs cramped up. At first she couldn't remember where she was , but then it all came flooding back to her in a rush. The party, John and Randy…and Mark. This wouldn't work. She couldn't take this anymore. Something had to change. She was too good a person to constantly be in pain like this. She'd been through enough. She'd go someplace where the people you loved didn't hurt you. Somewhere safe. Slowly she stood up and quietly opened the door. She glanced down the hallway and saw no one there. Good. She grabbed a pen and paper.

_Dad ,Mark, or whatever you want to be called, _

_I know that we've been through a lot. The good, the bad, the traumatizing and well I thought we could get through it all. You know just me and you. It'd always worked before. Between your relentless drive to see me normal and loved and my ability to forgive we've made it this far. But you've tested my resolve. I don't think I can forgive this time. You really hurt me. I know I'm not perfect, but well yeah you hurt me. _

_I know that you've sacrificed a lot for me to be safe and happy and I want to say thank you. You've helped me so much over the last three years and I'll be eternally grateful. With that being said, I know I've asked you to choose too many times, so this time I'll choose for you. Daddy, I'm leaving. Don't' try to find me, because you won't. I am my mother's child after all, disappearing is my specialty._

_I hope you have a good life with Michelle with lots of kids that you can love unconditionally who aren't damaged. You deserve it. You're right, I probably didn't give her a fair shake, but you know what? She didn't' give me one either. I know this is hard, but I just can't do this anymore. The sharing time, feeling like I'm always in competition, it's just too much. I guess I'm doomed to always be alone, I seem to get close and lose it. Um I'm just going to find somewhere for me to enjoy my life…alone. That seems to be the best option ofr me. I'm weak and I know it, I don't wanna break. So before something else happens I'm just going to leave. So please, please don't hate me. I know I just turned fifteen but I know more than you give me credit. This isn't healthy and I'm not happy, so I'm just going to go so that you can finally be happy. _

_I uh, love you._

_Autumn Mackenzie Calaway_

_P.S. Remember like you always said, there's no turning back._

Autumn reread the note one more time before taping it to the outside of her bedroom door. Her bag was over her shoulder and the money was stuffed into her pocket. Somehow she'd make it, she always did.


	24. Chapter 24

Because you guys asked! You rock!~See you at the bottom!

Mark rolled over, he hadn't meant to fall asleep. He sat up stretching and glanced at the clock: 6:45. It was probably a good time to get Autumn up and talk. He hoped she hadn't had a nightmare. He reached her room and gasped, ripped the note off the door and covered his mouth with his hand all in one motion. In a dead sprint he ran back to his room and grabbed his cell phone. The man answered groggily.

"Hello?"

"John is Autumn with you?" John sat up straight in his bed.

"No, why?"

"She left a note saying she was leaving, and her clothes are gone." John fell out of the bed and was scrambling to get dressed while still holding the phone.

"Hold on I'm going to see if she's with Randy."

"Ok." John ran down the hallway of the hotel with just jeans on and started banging on Randy's door. Randy opened very angrily and glared.

"Dude, Autumn left is she with you?" Randy's eyes grew wide.

"No." John cursed.

"Mark's losing his mind and her clothes are gone. Did she call you?" Randy frantically looked for his phone. Finally when he found it his heart caught in his throat.

"Yeah she did." Randy turned the voicemail on speaker phone and they listened.

"_Hey Rands this is Autumn. Um I'm calling to let you and John know that I'm leaving. No it isn't your fault. It's no one's fault really. Things just weren't meant to be. Um don't try to find me and please don't worry I can handle myself." _There was a pause._ "And just for the record the only reason I called you is because I knew you wouldn't answer. I love you guys. Maybe one day I'll come and see you. Bye."_ That was it and the phone clicked. They both held their breath.

"Just get dressed and I'll call Mark. We've got to get ahead of her there's no telling where she could be."

Autumn sat on the greyhound bus with her headphones on and listening to classical music. Her mind was a whirlwind of scenarios. What would Mark do when he found out she was gone? Would she ever go back? She sighed, life was all so complicated now.

Mark was pacing and murmuring to himself, he'd called the cops and they were working on it, but they wouldn't make any promises. This sucked, he hoped she was ok. Was she scared? Was she alright? God help him. He sprinted down the stairs and to the door. Randy and John were standing there looking disheveled and out of breath. "How'd it go?" They both shook their heads.

"Not good. The bus station saw her, but no one knows which bus she got on." Mark cursed. Randy took a deep breath and stepped forward.

"They uh found her cellphone, Mark." Mark looked at it and cradled it like it was the most important thing in the world. His mind went back to the day when they bought it, she was so small and shy. She would barely talk. How he wanted to just hold her. He shook his head, he had to focus. He had to.

"Ok, so what's next?"

"Well Glen's talking to the cops trying to get you set up so we can trace the call if she does call. Vince has asked all the major networks to put her face out there and he wants you to try and plead with her on Raw tomorrow." Mark shook his head.

"She won't want to see me. You guys should do it." John and Randy looked at him, Mark looked like he was ready to break into a sob at any minute.

"Have you uh heard from Michelle?" Mark glanced at them and quickly shook his head.

"Naw." Quite frankly, at this point he could care less. One thing was on his mind. One thing only.

Autumn looked around as she got off the bus. She frowned it wasn't that far but it was far enough. She didn't want to leave Texas, but it had to be done. She needed Trian to know she'd be there for him. Even if he did have a happy family, she wanted him to know that. Sighing, she decided to do some walking. This place wasn't too bad. It seemed kinda friendly really. It was a small town, just across the Texas New Mexico border. There were some small shops and some stuff. She figured why not explore?

The shops had all sorts of small trinkets, but Autumn couldn't help but admire them with thoughts of who they reminded her of. The snakeskin belt was Randy. The colorful sand filled bottle was John. The leather encrusted eagle was Mark…Mark. She shook it off. No ties to the past, that was dangerous.

Mark was breaking down. It was dark and she'd been gone for over twelve hours. The wedding was cancelled and EVERYONE was frantically looking for Autumn, well that is except for you know who. Autumn was nowhere to be found. It was like she'd vanished into thin air. The room was solemn and no one spoke. Everyone was in deep prayer, they just wanted their baby back. Mark looked around the room. John was staring at the floor. Randy was holding an ice pack to his face that was masked with guilt. He'd told Mark what he'd suggested and then after Mark left his hand print in Randy's eye socket, they'd been fine. They had a common goal…Autumn. Michelle on the other hand was out of the picture. After discovering that she was getting ousted by Autumn yet again she'd stormed out of the house and no one had seen her since. Mark shook his head…good riddance. The phone rang and everyone jumped. Mark ran over to the phone. "Autumn?" Mark sighed. "Hi Shawn."

"Hey um Autumn called asking for Trian earlier." Mark's heart leapt. "What'd she say? Did she say where she was?"

"No, she wouldn't tell us where she was." Mark's heart dropped. "But I got the area code and it's from New Mexico."

"New Mexico!" Randy and John were standing right behind Mark trying to hear what was going on.

"Yeah it was a New Mexico area code. I uh had the police here check it out and it's from southeast New Mexico. I don't wanna get your hopes but it was just like two hours ago so she could still be there." That's all Mark needed to hear.

"Thanks Shawn." He hung up the phone and started walking out the door. Randy and John exchanged glances.

"Wait whoa what'd he say?" Mark angrily turned around.

"Autumn called him a few hours ago asking for Trian. They traced the call to Southeast New Mexico. So that's where I'm going." They both flew into action.

"We're coming too." Mark nodded and they headed off in search of their baby.

Autumn was starting to get cold. This dry heat was something else. She should have packed better, wait she hadn't even known where she was going. She was scolding herself for letting herself get weak and calling Trian. She knew that would have them on her scent in no time. It's not like she didn't love them, but finding her would be too much. She wouldn't go back to the way things were. That was for sure. Autumn was walking along a creek hoping to continue northward until she hit at least another town or state. Either way, she couldn't stay in that area for too long. It was actually pretty at night with all the stars out. She had memories of her and Mark sleeping on the back deck watching the stars. Man those were good times. She shook her head. No! No ties to the past. She grunted and kicked a rock…wait the rock was moving. Slowly it began to stand and take its form. It was an armadillo. Awesome…a very angry armadillo. Before she could actually get scared it was shot with a bow and arrow. She looked towards the direction of an arrow and saw a weathered man with sun brown long hair dressed in camouflage. She began to back away.

"Whoa now," the man said. He slowly stepped closer to Autumn making her very uncomfortable. He held up his hands. "Relax, I ain't gonna hurt ya." Autumn was still tense and ready to run if necessary. "What's your name?" She still wouldn't respond. He nodded, "Ok, that's fair enough when a creepy man in the woods comes out of nowhere. If I were you I wouldn't tell me my name either." Autumn raised an eyebrow this guy was WEIRD. "I'm Sully." (haha Dr. Quinn)

"Sara." She knew better than to give a stranger her real name. The man smiled a bit.

"Ok, Sara why are you out here alone?" Autumn stared at him. Again he nodded. "Fair enough. Look I'm not tryin to scare ya or nothing, but it's dangerous out here. Maybe you should go find your parents." Autumn's jaw clenched at the word, Sully caught it.

"No parents huh? Me neither." Autumn continued to stare, this guy wasn't _that _bad. Sully was conflicted, she couldn't be any more than fifteen years old. God knows what would happen to her if he left her alone. "Look, um I really would hate myself for leaving you alone out here, why don't you come back with me and we'll get you some food or something?" Autumn frowned. He shook his head. "I won't hurt you." Yeah right, like she'd believe that. "Ok, wait. How about I give you all of my knives? Then would you trust me?" She thought about it. "If I don't have knives then how can I hurt you?" That did make sense and it was cold, but she still wasn't sure. Wait, who was she kidding? God somewhere with this guy who just killed something…yeah right! She took off in a dead sprint. Sully grunted. If she was alone out here the animals would eat her alive by sunrise. He had to go after her. He took off. Man she was a fast runner. Even with that bag on her shoulder, she was still running at a break neck speed. Autumn ran till she thought she'd lost him. She knew from experience how to pick out noises in the trees, but she heard nothing. She was glad she'd dodged that bullet. Autumn gasped. "Wow, you really can run!" Autumn frowned.

"Look Mister, I don't want any trouble. So please just leave me alone." Sully still out of breath shook his head.

"Sorry I can't do that. These wild animals would eat you quicker than you could scream. You're coming back with me. " Autumn shook her head. Sully was tired of debating. He reached over and slung her over his shoulder causing Autumn to pitch a fit. He reached down and grabbed her bag off the ground and started heading to his shack. They had only walked about forty steps when he started to get aggravated over her constant squirming. "Stop squirming or I'll make you stop." Autumn gasped and remained still. What had she gotten herself into?

Mark, John and Randy had been driving for hours. No one was speaking and the ride was tense. Everyone was focused on Autumn. Please God let her be ok. Mark wouldn't admit it, but he was emotionally spent. This day had been just too much. First Autumn leaving, then a called off wedding, and now they were driving into the night praying that she'd be alright. This was just too much. That letter kept replaying over and over in his mind. 'You hurt me…I can't do this anymore…you deserve kids who aren't damaged'. Mark wanted to be sick. His selfishness had pushed her to this. Without knowing it, he started to reminisce over the last three years. They'd had many good times, her giggling, them fishing, her learning to ride a horse, their first time riding together on his motorcycle. Then his idiocracy flashed before him. All the times he'd made her cry, her fearful eyes, the day she collapsed on the soccer field, that night in the hospital. They'd been through so much, he sighed. He couldn't begin to fathom the rest of his life without her. A stray tear fell from his eye. He quickly wiped it away, not wanting the others to see him cry.

Autumn stared at her plate of food in front her. She was really skeptical to eat anything Sully put in front of her. Trusting him wasn't something that would come easily. This was so sketchy. In an instant she got a flood of despair…she wanted her daddy. Sully noticed her demeanor change, this wasn't some orphan. She was too kept. She was a probably a runaway. He decided to talk to her, maybe he could some clue out of her.

"So, where are you from?" Autumn frowned, yeah right. Sully changed his tactics. "Alright, so what do you like to do for fun?" Autumn started tapping her leg.

"I like to paint and play soccer." Sully smiled.

"I like paint too. What do you paint?" She smiled, it was always easier to talk about art.

"Um, landscapes and abstract. I like to get an array of emotions out." Sully smiled.

"Array? You must be very smart." She smiled, that's what Mark always said.

"I guess."

"So where you headed?" Autumn sighed, nosey.

"Not sure." Her foot started tapping again.

"Well, I'll tell you what. You answer my questions and tomorrow I'll drive you out of these woods and to the nearest bus station." Autumn sighed, it was better than trekking through those woods.

"How can I know to trust you?"

"Uh well you can't, but if I was going to do something to you I would have knocked you over the head long ago." Sully meant it as a joke, but he saw Autumn visibly pale. "No, I was joking. You can trust me." He stood up and pulled out his wallet. "Here this is my driver's license. I'm going to turn around and you can put it somewhere. That way if something happens you'll have my identity to tell the cops." Autumn thought about it, he did seem trustworthy. She grabbed the license and put it in her sock. "So we have a deal?" Autumn took a deep breath and nodded. "Alright, so where are you from." She debated on whether she should lie, but she hated liars and she was tired…real tired.

"Houston."

"Why are you out here alone?"

"My dad hates me." Sully looked into her eyes and saw pain. He shook his head.

"Why'd you say that?"

"He let me come out here didn't he?" Sully had to give her that one. "Besides, he's probably on his honeymoon by now." She knew she was kidding herself even Mark wasn't _that_ much of a jerk. But somehow though pitying herself was better than guilt she felt overwhelmingly.

"So what's her name?" Autumn's eyes narrowed and venom spewed out of her mouth.

"Michelle." Sully laughed, she wasn't kidding that she didn't like this woman.

"She do something to you?" Autumn shook her head indifferently.

"Just make my dad hate me."

"She hit you?"

"No."

"She say nasty things to you?"

"Not really."

"Then why do you hate her?" Autumn frowned.

"She treats me like dirt. She wants all his attention. It wouldn't be so bad if she didn't mind him spending some time with me, but she wants it all to herself." Autumn shook her head disgustedly. Sully felt really bad for her, she just really seemed rejected.

"So how long has it just been you and your dad?" Autumn looked at him curiously. "Well you seem to be shooting venom over her taking all his time. It seems like he's all you have." She nodded.

"Yeah pretty much. Um she's been around for about a year. Well they've been together for about a year and a half, but I didn't know about it until months later." Sully shook his head, this kid had been through a lot. "Oh, um it's been me and my dad for about three years now."

"Oh, have any siblings?"

"One, but he lives in San Antonio. We have different fathers." Sully sighed, broken homes were so depressing.

"Um, I hope I'm not overstepping my bounds, but if he's all you have, then won't he be devastated by you leaving?" Autumn looked down. That was probably true, she'd thought she was doing the right thing for both of them but she saw how very selfish it was at that moment. She felt like dirt. Sully saw her change. "Hey why don't we call your dad and just let him know you're ok? I'm sure he's worried." He saw a flash of worry flood through her eyes. She became very nervous. "Ok, it was just a suggestion. How about you go and get cleaned up? You're probably tired huh?" He had no idea. Autumn gave a small sigh but nodded. He showed her where the bathroom was and watched her close the door. He only had a few minutes. Moving like he was possessed he looked all over her bag for some type of number so he could find this girl's parents. She didn't need to be alone…no one did. Sully had no idea how long she'd be in the shower, he hoped somehow he'd find something before she came out because there was no way that he'd leave her alone at a bus station. None. He moved clothes, blankets, food…nothing. He'd all but given up hope when he realized her bag had a tag on it.

A. Calaway

671-555-4789

Dad-671-534-9791

Sully let out a sigh of relief, quickly he scribbled down the number then put everything back like it was and headed back to the table. He'd have to wait to call her dad. Autumn was in the shower and boy did it feel good. Thank God, for hot water. It seemed with every passing minute that she was losing stress. All her worries and fears were melting away. Tomorrow Sully would take her to the bus station and she'd keep going. This time though, she decided to keep heading north. She needed somewhere secluded, maybe she'd take residence just outside of Phoenix…yeah that seemed like a good idea. Sully looked up as she came out of the bathroom. He smiled.

"Well I only have one room, so you take my bed and I'll take the couch." She frowned, yeah right.

"No I'll take the couch." Sully shook his head.

"Nope, because if you try to run away in the middle of the night coyotes will eat you and I'll never forgive myself. Take the bed, get a good night's rest, and that way tomorrow you'll have a clear head." Autumn noticed the stubborn glint in his eye and rolled her eyes before nodding. Sully showed her where to sleep and she was out before her head hit the pillow.

He waited for an hour or so and then checked on her again. She was still asleep, it was time to make the call. He stepped back into the kitchen and grabbed the phone. He hoped someone answered.

Mark grunted as his phone started ringing, it was the middle of the night and John and Randy were passed out behind him. He didn't recognize the number and hit reject. He needed to keep the phone open, then he thought about it. What if that was Autumn? He scolded himself and hit redial. The phone picked up after the first ring. "Hello?"

"Uh, Hi this is Byron Sully and I found a girl wandering around earlier, says her name is Sara." Mark frowned, his hopes were high for a minute.

"I don't know any Sara. Thanks for calling." The man shook his head.

"No!" Mark was startled. "Please don't hang up. Um well I got this number off her bag it said A. Calaway. She's got long brown hair and big brown eyes. Do you know her?" Mark's heart stopped in his chest.

"Yes! She's my daughter. Where is she?" Sully let out a sigh of relief.

"She's asleep in the other room. I found her wandering around in the woods just outside of town near the bus station." Mark sighed with relief. "I told her I'd take her to the nearest bus station tomorrow, but I really wanted to see if I could get her to go home."

"Can you give me directions?"

"Of course!" Sully gave Mark directions and then closed his phone.

"Boys!" he bellowed. John and Randy shot awake startled.

"What Mark?"

"My baby's comin' home!" He couldn't help but feel filled with hope. Finally his prayers had been answered. He was going to get another chance to live up to his promise. Too many times he'd tried and failed. Now he needed to move past himself and live to shower his daughter with the affection she needed. He was shaken from his thought by a lone question.

"Mark, um what are you going to do when you get her back?" The question had been lingering on everyone's mind, but only Randy had the balls to ask.

"Honestly, I don't know." They nodded, they really hoped she was ok. Mark sighed all he wanted to do right now was hug her until she couldn't breathe. Please God protect his baby.

Thanks to all my dope reviewers.

Today's shout out goes to…. Rkoenigma, soulless666, mattaggot (work sucks!), and sonib89!

You guys continue to inspire me…thanks for all the reviews!


	25. Chapter 25

_Autumn felt her heart constrict with an array of emotions as she couldn't deal with. She was at the bus station waiting on her bus to pull in. She couldn't help but to notice all of those kids with their families all around her. A lone tear fell from her cheek. It was WRONG what they say, 'it's __**worse **__to have loved and lost and to never have loved at all'. Oh boy, was she living proof that! She'd had a daddy, she'd had a family she could depend on, and she'd thrown it all away. What had she been thinking? That's all she'd ever wanted and she'd let it go. More tears threatened to escape from her eyes, but she wouldn't let them. She didn't even deserve her own pity. She was stupid. Scum of the earth. No one should love her. She'd taken a piece of these people's hearts and trampled on them. She didn't deserve love. A deep gravelly voice bellowed from the other side of the station. "Autumn!" She turned hopefully, she knew that voice. _

"_Daddy!" She dropped her bag and ran towards him. Closer, closer, closer and then right into his arms. His arms wrapped around her protectively and she felt…peace. She snuggled into his chest. This was where she belonged. Mark stood up, what was going on? She saw Michelle walk towards them. _

"_You almost ruined it, but you didn't." Autumn couldn't breathe._

"_Daddy?" Mark shook his head._

"_I tried, I really did, but you're too much." He paused and eyes grew cold. "I'm sending you back to the group home." Her body went cold and her breath caught in her throat. She started backing away. _

"_Daddy? I'm sorry." Mark shook his head._

"_I don't want you anymore." Then she was grabbed from behind and drug away by two police. _

"_Please!" She was practically crying, her breathing was rapid. "Please!" Mark and Michelle both turned their backs. "Please!"_

Autumn shot up straight in the bed in a cold sweat. She looked around and tried to regain her bearings . Her breathing was rapid and she was scared. Oh, how she wanted someone to hold her. Was it a dream? She rubbed her face, it all seemed so real. Would Mark really do that? She shook her head, there was no way she'd be able to sleep now. None. She couldn't help but to think about Mark. She tried and tried to not do it, but it didn't work. Her mind kept wandering back to random memories.

"_Daddy, the stupid fish keeps taking the bait and leaving the hook!" Autumn was highly upset. They'd been on the lake for almost three hours and she'd yet to catch a single fish. Mark chuckled at her. Clearly, he needed to explain the concept of fishing again. He grabbed her pole and redid the bait. _

"_Ladybug, you've gotta watch the pole. It'll start shaking ever so slightly and then you'll know that you need to start reeling it in." Autumn snatched the pole away and narrowed her eyes…if it were only that easy._

Autumn shook her head, back in those early days everything seemed about them needing to be together. Whether she wanted to admit it or not, she missed Mark. She missed his hugs, she missed his smell, she missed him. Oh, how she missed him. Tears were forming in her eyes and she didn't have the resolve to stop them. Better to shed tears sitting in the dark than when it could cause problems later. She wanted her daddy. She pulled her knees to her chest. She wanted her daddy, _bad_.

Mark was seething, the stupid cop two towns over had given him a three hundred dollar ticket for speeding _and _a lecture on safe driving. Like he needed that. The stupid cop had talked for almost fifteen minutes chewing up Mark's extra time to get to the bus station before Autumn could get on the bus. He didn't want to miss her. He couldn't afford to miss her. John and Randy sat pretty much stoic in the back seat praying that she didn't do something stupid like run last night. This was all so hairy. It was gonna take six miracles to pull this off. They were all tense and clenching tightly to their seatbelts as Mark was now doing close to 95mph down the highway. Some of the tension was for Autumn but most of it was because they were nervous that they were gonna die. Now _that_ would be really bad. John shook his head he could see the headlines now. **WWE SUPERSTARS KILLED IN MAD DASH TO SAVE ORPHAN. **Now that would be a story for the ages. Both wanted to tell him to slow down, but the way Mark was acting neither of them could muster the courage to. Mark was shaking his head and talking to himself in grunts. His demeanor said, 'don't bother me, but his mind was saying 'please God let me find her.

Autumn sat in Sully's passenger seat a tad anxious. Would he really take her to the bus station? They'd already stopped twice for random groceries, but now they were supposedly heading towards the bus station. He told her that she'd be on the first bus out which made her happy. She did like him a bit, but it was better to move on than to stay in one place. Sully looked at her. He could tell by her eyes that she had been crying and her features were marked by sorrow. He could see it written all over her small body. He shook his head, he hope her dad would get there soon.

"So where do you think you're headed?" She shrugged.

"Wherever the bus will go." Sully nodded, he was trying his hardest not to let on that he'd call her dad and they were meeting her there.

"So will you ever go home?" She shrugged with no response. "You know I ran away when I was younger." She looked at him curiously, might as well show some interest. "Yup, all the way out here from New York." When she didn't comment he continued. "Yeah it was great for the most part, I got away from my psycho father, but I left behind my mother." He shook his head. "I never got to say goodbye before she passed away." Autumn looked at him, he was trying to manipulate her. Now she really needed to get away from him. They pulled into the bus station. Autumn hopped out and grabbed her bag.

"Thanks for the ride." Sully shook his head.

"Unh huh, I've seen you this far I'll see you off." Autumn rolled her eyes, no use in arguing. She slung her bag over her shoulder and headed to the ticket counter. She narrowed her eyes….they'd missed the first bus. "Sorry, I guess I got the times mixed up." She gave him a look and walked over to the seats, of course Sully came and sat down next to her. He kept trying to talk to her, but Autumn wanted no part of the conversation. Was she acting childish? Selfish maybe? You bet, but she didn't care. She didn't care at all. She laughed to herself apparently she was Mark's kid after all.

About half an hour passed and finally the second bus was here. It was heading towards…Texas? She was now pissed off royally. Now she'd have to wait for another two hours before she could leave. Note to self, don't try and catch a bus in a small town. She decided to put her iPod on, better than listening to Sully babble.

Mark pulled into the parking lot screeching the brakes…they didn't have much time. They were really cutting it close. John and Randy took off in a dead sprint inside the bus station, while Mark did the best he could to get there as quickly as possible. Randy was the first one to enter the bus station and looked around frantically, where was she? His breath caught in his throat when he saw her sitting there listening to her iPod and journaling. He hit John in the chest with the back of his hand. "Look." John couldn't help but to smile. There she was…and she was safe. They silently agreed that it would be best for them to walk quietly and not attract attention to themselves. They needed to grab her before she could run. Too bad there was one problem. They were Randy FREAKING! Orton and John OH MY GOSH! Cena. Within moments they were being swarmed by fans. Try as they may they couldn't get through the crowd quick enough the more they tried the more fans swarmed. Autumn noticed everyone around her frantically screaming and jumping. What was going on? Then she saw them. A mixture of emotions came over her. Where was Mark? She wanted to cry. She knew this would happen! He'd chosen Michelle over her. She shook her head so the tears wouldn't come. Moving before John or Randy could get out of the mob, she grabbed her bag and broke into a dead sprint for the door on the opposite end of the room. The door couldn't be farther away. It seemed like eternity when she finally was in reach of the door. She threw her body at the door only to have it remain close. Her body it the floor with a thud, quickly glancing back she saw John and Randy running towards her scrambling to her feet she saw green eyes staring down at her. Slowly she backed away, she couldn't believe what she was seeing.

"Autumn," the words came out in a gasp of air, marred with despair and relief. She shook her head, this would be just like her dream. She began backing away still shaking her head.

"No," she said. Mark shook his head.

"Yes."

"No," she said louder. Mark continued to walk towards her. "You're not here for me, no."

"Yes, yes I'm here for you, baby. Yes." She shook her head.

"You're supposed to be with Michelle not me. I ruin everything! Go back, you'll leave me, go back!"

"No, I won't go anywhere without you."

"But you said…" She shook her head and broke down into sobs. Mark moved quickly and grabbed her before she could fall to the floor. He wrapped his arms around her and rested his chin on her head. John and Randy reached them, they sighed with relief, at least she hadn't taken off again. Mark was murmuring 'I love you' into her hair and kissing her head repeatedly as tears rolled down his cheeks. Autumn felt like dying, why had she done this? She cried and cried, then she noticed her head was wet…was he crying? Slowly she pulled away and looked at him through tear stained eyes and saw he was looking at her through the same blurriness. Not being able to deal with it, she buried her face into her chest. This was home.

:D Love all the reviews guys… Seriously you rock!

Shoutouts to…Mattaggot (F.T. rocked!), SnowAngel2009, and cena's baby doll, soulless666, and Lynnevicious (I'll so take you up on that)


	26. Chapter 26

Autumn was sitting in the hotel room still feeling like a jerk. She'd seen how disheveled and exhausted Mark looked and felt terrible. She couldn't deal with it. Why had she done this? Was it anger? Jealousy? Confusion? She was disgusted with herself. She sighed. After they'd left the bus station they'd hopped back into the truck and driven pretty much all the way back to Houston in almost utter silence before Mark decided to stop for the night. It was like everyone was shunning her. Mark would make a phone call here and there while John and Randy were conversing amongst themselves. It was torture for her, but she couldn't blame them though. After all she was the one that ran off. Even though she would never admit it, John and Randy's shunning of her hurt the most. She'd expected Mark to be mad, but them too? That was too much. Even after they reached the hotel they hadn't said much of anything to her. As soon as they'd hit the hotel they went off in search of their rooms. Autumn was frustrated with herself. She'd just made it worse, first only Michelle hated her but now they_ all_ did. Sadly she thought that she was probably better off wandering around in the woods with demonic armadillos.

Mark was in the bathroom staring at the sink. He couldn't believe the relief he felt now that he had her in his arms and safe. He never wanted to let her go. He was feeling like a jerk. Had he really ignored her to the point where she thought his life would be better off without her? He really needed to talk to her. He sighed deeply before exiting the bathroom. He couldn't manage anything but a smile when he saw her there sitting on the bed knees pulled to her chest. Yesterday he never thought that he'd see her again let alone have her in his hotel room. "Autumn?" She lifted her head with red rimmed eyes. Mark's heart broke. He walked over to her and gently pulled him to his side. She buried her face in his chest. He rubbed her back soothingly for a moment. He took a deep breath and made her sit up. "We need to have a talk." Autumn shifted, she knew this would happen. He was going to send her back. "Baby you scared the life out of me." Autumn kept her head down. "Why'd you do that? Do you have any idea as to how dangerous that was? What if someone as trustworthy as Sully had found you?" The questions came out in a flurry, starting out quietly and then getting louder as his anger and fear were unleashed. Autumn flinched. He lifted her head with his index finger. "Well?" She quickly dropped his gaze and lowered her head yet again. Mark shook his head, clearly she felt badly. There was no point in yelling at her. Just stay calm that's all he needed to do.

"Mark?" her voice was so small and scared that Mark's heart shattered into a thousand pieces. He wanted to do nothing more than wrap her in his arms, but he refrained. He needed to be tough.

"Who?" Autumn looked at him scared for a moment and then smiled.

"Daddy Warbucks?" Mark smiled and looked into her eyes.

"Look, I don't ever want you to think it's ok to call me Mark. I'm your dad, you're my kid, deal with it." Autumn smiled, if only she could be sure of that. There was a knock at the door. Mark stood to answer it and then thought better of it. He turned to Autumn. "Why don't you go get it?" She looked at him, knowing who it probably was. She didn't want to face them. They might just turn their backs on her too. "Go on." She sighed and stood up heading towards the door. Opening it she couldn't do anything but hold her head down holding her breath. Moment of truth. Before she knew what was happening she was engulfed in a hug and being spun around. Autumn was in shock, why weren't they upset? John set her down and bent to her level.

"Little girl, don't you ever scare me like that again." Autumn couldn't help but to smile "Got it?" She gave a soft smile and nodded before throwing her arms around his neck. Everyone couldn't help but to smile. It was apparent that they cared for her as much as she cared for them.

"Hey stop hogging her!" Randy muscled John out of the way and pulled Autumn close. She clung to him like a barnacle. She hadn't realized that there was no way in the world that she'd be able to live the rest of her life without these two men. None.

"You scared us, don't do that again."

"I won't."

"Good I'd hate to have to dropkick you." Autumn scoffed.

"Like you'd be able to." Randy rolled his eyes, while John laughed.

"Glad to have you back." He ruffled her hair gaining a frown.

"Alright guys, the kid and I need to have a talk. So we'll see you guys tomorrow." Autumn sighed, this was going to be a great night. John and Randy nodded they each pulled her close and kissed her head. Once the door was closed Autumn stared at the door praying that they'd taken her with them. "Come sit, we need to finish this." Sighing all the way Autumn walked back towards Mark and sat down next to him. This would suck. Mark watched her, it was like there was a cloud of sadness around her. He stared at her for a minute, then spoke. "Ok, this is what's going to happen." Autumn looked at him straight in the eyes. She couldn't see any indication of what was to come. A gulp escaped from the depths of her anxiety. Oh, man. "I'm going to ask you a question and you're going to answer it." Mark's green eyes were staring into her big brown ones with a look of dead seriousness.

"Yes sir."

"Good." Mark took a moment to look at her. She'd really grown into a beautiful young woman. With her long brown hair flowing down her back the sparkly brown eyes. He shook his head, God help the young boy who tried to take her out. He blinked his eyes quickly trying to clear the cobwebs. "Why did you run?" Autumn sighed.

"Um, I didn't want to come between you and her." Mark sighed, she was 'her' now.

"Oh, how so?"

"Well it always felt like she and I were competing for your time. Greedy witch," she spat. She felt Mark's gaze bore into her skull and she dropper her head before sighing. Her demeanor changed to reflective and somber. She took a deep breath. "I didn't want all of your time, just some of it. I got tired of making you choose or me being disappointed." She shook her head. "I just couldn't take it anymore." Mark rubbed his hand over his goatee. He'd known she was upset but he hadn't anticipated it wearing that much on her.

"So why didn't you come and tell me?" She shifted slightly.

"I um didn't want to hurt you."

"What?" Autumn started moving her foot around in a circle. She need something to stare at, anything but Mark. ANYthing.

"Well, you lost your first wife tragically and your kids. I know how much that hurt you. I um didn't want to cost you a second wife or more kids." Mark felt hot tears rising in his eyes. This little girl was amazing. Here he was thinking that she was selfish for all this time and now he realized that it was selflessness marred by hurt. He wrapped his arm around her and pulled her close to his body. Autumn was confused…was this the calm before the storm? He kissed her head and moved away from her so that she could look into his eyes. Autumn's breath caught in her throat, this was it.

"Autumn Mackenzie that is one of the sweetest things anyone has ever said to me." He paused trying to gain his composure, he'd already cried enough for today. "You are the most important thing in my life. Nothing can overshadow you or ever will. I'm sorry if I ever let you feel like that wasn't true." Autumn was confused why was he apologizing? She was the one that ran away. She shook her head in confusion. Mark reached over and cupped her face in his hands. "Never forget that your Daddy loves you." He kissed her forehead and then released her face. Autumn looked into his eyes hopefully.

"Love you too." Mark closed his eyes and pulled her close. She was all he ever wanted. Nothing else mattered. He soaked in the moment. He needed to remember this feeling, he never wanted to let it go. Finally, after a few moments he cleared his throat.

"Alright Autumn, I'm going to say this straight up. You scared me. Don't you ever do that again." Autumn recoiled slightly, she was holding her breath. "You're grounded for two months. School, soccer, working at the gym, then home. No computer, no phone, no TV, and no movies. You know the drill." Autumn stared in confusion, he was going to take her home? Mark saw the confusion in her eyes. "What you thought I'd take you back to the group home?" Autumn gasped, how'd he know? Mark chuckled and pulled her close. "I know you better than you think, Ladybug." Autumn opened her mouth to protest, but Mark stopped her. "After what you put me through, I can call you whatever I want." She sighed and nodded, what she'd done was stupid.

"I'm sorry I worried you." Mark nodded.

"I know you are." He softened. "Just please _please _remember that you can always come to me. I may not listen very well, but I promise if you come I'll do my best. I don't ever want you to feel like you're not important enough. Understood?" She shifted. "What?"

"Sometimes you get mean and you don't hear a word I say." Mark sighed, she'd noticed.

"Ok, if that happens write me a note. That way I have no choice but to hear what you're saying." Autumn nodded.

"Ok." Mark stood up.

"Alright, it's time for bed." Autumn figured it was better not to argue, two months of grounding was enough, she didn't want to push it. She stood up and kissed Mark on the cheek before getting into her bed. Mark turned out the light and lay back. So many emotions had run through him in the last few days. Joy, anger, fear, confusion, worry, anxiety, relief, rage, peace. He was emotionally drained from the inside out. Who knew raising a teenager would be so much work? Shockingly though, he wouldn't trade it for the world. She was his baby and he was her daddy….enough said.

Mark rolled over and heard shuffling. He let his eyes adjust to the dark. Autumn? She was standing over him. "Baby what's wrong?" She fidgeted slightly and put her head down.

"I um well had a nightmare." Mark narrowed his eyes in the dark. She never came to him if she had a nightmare…never. This was weird. They sat in silence for a moment before Mark slid back toward the center of the bed and opened the cover.

"Here hop in." Autumn hesitated and Mark pulled her down. She resisted at first and then relaxed, there was no use in fighting it…this was where she wanted to be. Mark slid a pillow under her head and protectively wrapped his arm around her body. Finally, the both managed to start dozing.

"Daddy?" Mark smiled slightly, the word still brought unprecedented joy.

"Mhm."

"Um, thanks for coming to get me." Mark smiled.

"Anytime." Then he thought about. "Don't ever run off again." Autumn rolled her eyes…parents.

Alright lemme know what you guys think!

Shoutouts to… Lynnie Vicious, Sonib89, xxxRKOEnigmaxxx, Mattaggot, Souless666, and Cena's Baby doll..you guys rock so flipping hard! Thanks for the great reviews.


	27. Chapter 27

Autumn was sitting on the back porch on the step staring up at the beautiful sky. It was so amazing during this time of the year. She loved the stars, no matter how many times she stared up at them she always found something she hadn't seen before. She looked down at her vibrating phone: John.

"Hey John," she said turning her head back to the sky.

"Hey Autumn…what's up with you shorty?"

"Eh, nothin' much just looking up at the stars."

"Oh, I thought Mark had you on a strict schedule these days?" Autumn rolled her eyes of course he'd bring that up.

"It's to help me with soccer and soccer is having a two week break so my schedule is off."

"Oh jus' checkin'."

"Yup." There was a long silence between them as Autumn continued to stare at the stars.

"What's up, why are you so quiet tonight? Usually you can't wait to tell me all your girlie gossip." Autumn frowned.

"I do not gossip John Cena." John laughed.

"Sure ya don't. Um, how are things between you and Mark?" She shrugged.

"Pretty good, about the same really." John sighed, he was afraid of that. Ever since the incident a few months ago they'd been on icy terms. It wasn't really the fault of either of them. It was the fault of Michelle, who'd made thousands of promises up and down about being under temporary insanity. They still weren't married but Michelle was still around all the time. John's heart broke for her. He knew all she really wanted Mark, but of course Mark was too dense to just recognize his daughters desire to be the apple of his eye.

"How do you feel about coming with me on the road for a few weeks this summer?" Autumn thought about it, Mark and Michelle wanted to go to Mexico but she wasn't feeling that.

"I don't know. I have a soccer conditioning toward the end of the summer, but other than that I'm free. Well that is if Mark agrees." John frowned, she was back to referring to him as Mark.

"Well I call him and check it out for you ok?"

"Ok." She said it with a clear tone that said she didn't want to talk anymore. They bid each other goodnight and she went back to staring longingly at the stars.

"_Look," Mark was pointing towards the sky at a set of constellations. Autumn couldn't make out what he was showing her. There were a bunch of trees blocking her view of the horizon._

"_I can't see it." Mark took her hand and swept her onto his shoulders and pointed. Autumn gasped at the sight. It was a cluster of stars shining as bright as could be, it was so pretty. _

"_Gorgeous ain't it?" _

"_Definitely. It's all so beautiful, I mean it's so big and far away but still it shines brightly." _

"_Just like you in my heart." Autumn rolled her eyes._

"_Wow, that was corny."_

"_Hey, it doesn't matter."_

"_Yeah sure." _

Autumn missed those types of excursions. Just her and her daddy. She'd never tell him, but she really wanted to be all that mattered to him, just one more time. Mark watched her from the glass behind the sliding glass door. He knew that his relationship was taking a toll on Autumn, but of course the child would never admit that, she was too loyal. For the last few weeks he'd been reevaluating his lifestyle. He found no greater joy than seeing her laugh or watching her beam after an art expo or a won soccer tournament. She'd come into his life reluctantly getting more attached to him each day. Begrudgingly they learned that they needed each other. She showed him how to live again and he showed her love. Sighing he made his decision, no one would be more important that his Ladybug.

About twenty minutes later she was sitting on the porch rubbing her arms. Who knew the temperature could drop so quickly? She felt a blanket being draped around her shoulders. Turning around she saw Mark standing their holding a cup of hot chocolate. Autumn accepted it.

"Lots of marshmallows and a hint of honey, just the way I like it." Mark sat down next to.

"What you think your daddy doesn't know what you like?" She smiled.

"Only about somethings."

"Oh, like what?"

"Well you know like my favorite car, or how to fix my salad, or you know my taste in men." Mark spat out his hot chocolate.

"I'm the only man for you." Autumn let out a laugh.

"Uh no. That's just nasty." Mark rolled his eyes.

"Anyway, I've got some news for you." Autumn held her breath, they were getting married. "I um broke up with Michelle." She turned and looked at Mark not wanting to give too much away.

"Really?"

"Yes, I realized that no matter what happened, you would never be her first priority. That would be unacceptable." Autumn smiled softly, finally he'd come to his senses. Mark pulled her close. "I never want you to forget that you're my first priority. You and no one else."

"So will it go back to like it was before?" Mark smiled, he hadn't realized just how much she craved being his one and only.

"Yup." Autumn's smiled grew broad and she squeezed everything out of Mark. He grunted.

"Woah, ok, you're crushing my ribs." Autumn slowly released.

"Sorry."

"It sure is beautiful isn't it?" She nodded.

"Yeah, I just love it out here."

"Hey, guess what?"

"What?"

"I love you." Autumn rolled her eyes. He couldn't help but be corny. She was so happy, how could this day get any better? First hanging with John this summer and now this. Life was awesome and she was thrilled. Mark watched her entire disposition change. Boy was he an idiot. His daughter wanted him all to herself, he should have felt special. He made a vow…this time it would be different. Love would have to come with all parties involved.

Autumn was so tired, soccer practice was brutal today. They were getting ready for the annual tournament and everyone was going overboard. She was so tired. It was nearing the end of the school year and she was getting really excited about riding around with John and Randy for a month this summer. They even said that maybe they could stop by Universal Studios when they hit the East coast. And Paul had agreed to let her sit ringside right next to king for one match. Needless to say she was stoked.

"Hey." Autumn jumped. The boy with short brown hair and beautiful wavy hair smiled at her. "I'm sorry I didn't mean to scare you. I saw you walking and -" Autumn shook it off.

"No it's fine, I just didn't hear you coming. I'm Autumn."

"I'm Grant." Autumn nodded and kept pushing her bike along the sidewalk. "I saw you earlier, you're really good."

"Thanks." Autumn didn't know what to make of this guy. He seemed nice, but didn't they all?

"So um, why are you walking home? Most kids have drivers around here." Autumn shrugged.

"My dad doesn't believe in spoiling me." Autumn sighed, wasn't that the truth? "What about you? You're walking." Grant smiled, while holding his baseball cleats in his hand.

"Actually, my parents took my car from me for missing my curfew." Autumn laughed.

"Don't you just hate that?" Grant looked surprised.

"Oh you drive?" She shook her head.

"No, my dad is still teaching me. I have my permit though."

"So how old are you?"

"Fifteen."

"Oh so you're a freshmen?"

"Yeah." He nodded.

"That's cool, I'm a sophomore."

"With your own car?" Autumn sighed, she sounded like one of those airhead girls she despised so much.

"Yeah, that's what happens when your dad owns like half of Texas."

"Yeah I guess that would happen."

Autumn and Grant talked the whole rest of the way to her house. She hadn't meant to show him where she lived, it just sorta happened. It turns out that he was really nice. It was weird, she'd never been interested in a boy like that before. Dating as shocking as it sounds had never really crossed her mind. Now it had.

"Well I better get inside and call my dad before he sends the Texas Rangers after me." Grant smiled.

"Ok, well it was nice talking to you. Um just lemme know if you need a ride after soccer practice. Baseball usually lets out around the same time." Autumn smiled.

"Alright, thanks." Grant stared at her for a moment and then lightly kissed her on the cheek. Autumn began to blush wildly.

"I'm uh sorry. I shouldn't have done that." He was mentally berating himself. Autumn smiled, he looked really embarrassed, it was kinda of cute.

"No um, don't be. It was very sweet." Grant gave her a soft smile and grabbed her hand.

"I would really like it if we could hang out sometime. What do you say?" Autumn smiled.

"Yeah I'd like that." Grant smiled his shy smile and they exchanged phone numbers. He turned to leave.

"I'll um be waiting for your call." Autumn smiled. Grant turned back around and gave her one last kiss on the cheek. He was violently wrenched away from Autumn and his collar was deep in the grasp of Mark Calaway.

"Autumn Mackenzie would you like to explain this?" Autumn looked at Grant who looked petrified and Mark had steam coming out of his ears. She sighed.

"Well um…"

HAHAHAHAHA…now that's gotta suck!

Anyway thanks for reading and reviewing. More to come soon.

BTW Mattaggot, your rock! (Family Ties & PMBNK rocks! Check em out!)


	28. Chapter 28

Autumn took a deep breath and stared at the barren room around her. She'd taken all of her decorations down and moved the paints to the attic. Now her room looked just as it did when she first moved in. It was like she was a back to her old self. Except this time she wasn't scared, she was distant. A piece of her had changed that day when Mark drove Grant out of her house. Coincidentally, he also drove her into a cold shell of herself that even she hadn't witnessed before.

_"Well um…"____Autumn wanted to cry, this was so embarrassing and Mark looked ready to murder. "Um, this is my friend Grant and uh we were just talking." Mark rolled his eyes and tightened his grip on Grant's shirt. _

"_Yeah it didn't' look like that to me." Mark grunted. "Get in the house." She opened the door and turned back to look at Mark._

"_Dad, uh can you let him go?" Mark laughed and motioned for to sit at the counter. _

"_Sit." She sighed and sat in her usual seat while Mark practically threw Grant at the chair two seats down. "Explain." _

"_Sir, I was…." _

"_I wasn't talking to you. Autumn Mackenzie, explain to me what happened?" She sighed, this was so embarrassing. _

"_I was walking home from soccer practice, when Grant stopped me. We decided to keep talking after we got here. He asked me for my phone number and kissed me on the cheek." _

"_How many times?" _

"_Huh?"_

"_How many times did he kiss you?" _

"_What? Um twice. Please don't make a big deal of this." Mark shook his head and turned to Grant._

"_You kissed my daughter?"_

"_Yes sir. I like her a lot. I'm sorry if you feel disrespected that wasn't my intention." Mark continued his glare, but was softening, this kid seemed nice enough. That was the problem. _

Autumn shuddered at the memory. Grant had pretty much vaporized after that day and along with him so did her social life. She'd become a social leper since then. Apparently Grant had told everyone how he was attacked by the Undertaker. Now, everyone knew who her dad was and wanted nothing to do with her family of 'fake' wrestlers. She'd almost gotten into a fight the last day of school, but luckily it was broken up. She'd left that day feeling sad. Now, she had to look forward to sophomore year, somehow all she could do was hope that it would turn out better. Now she was packing to leave for a month on the road with John and Randy. Her heart wasn't really into it anymore. Honestly she didn't know where her heart could go. In the last few months her perspective on everything had changed. Things she used to find joy in were now a mere after thought. She hadn't painted in so long that she couldn't remember. It was so weird, her and Mark were back on good terms but her life sucked. It had lost its fun. Sighing she fell back dramatically on the bed and began to think. Where had her happiness gone?

Sorry for long wait and short chappie…I plan on updating very soon with a longer chapter.

Thanks guys I love your reviews!


	29. Chapter 29

Her bags were in the corner packed and ready to go. Mark gently opened the door and smiled at his baby. There was no way that he'd be able to deal with her being gone for a month, but he knew eventually he'd have to let her go. It was all a part of growing up. Plus he'd felt somewhat bad for driving that boy away. He hadn't meant to cause such a drastic ripple in her world, but he did and he felt terrible about it. This was going to be hard.

"Autumn Mackenzie?" Autumn sat up and smiled.

"Hey Dad." Mark sat down on her bed and wrapped his arm around her.

"You ready to deal with life without your old man?" Autumn scoffed.

"Totally." Mark put his hand over his heart feigning hurt.

"You're breaking my heart!"

"Suck it up old man, Trian lives with the heartbreaker. I'm just good ole Ladybug." Mark smiled. He loved her.

"Hey, what's up with the dreary room? It's so…plain."

"Um, I just felt like it was time for a change." Mark narrowed his eyes. A change?

"What' do you mean?" She shrugged, she didn't really know what was happening let alone to put it into words. Mark shook his head, maybe a month away would do her some good. He knew he could trust Cena to look out for her, his only real fear would be how she'd handle day to day life without him regulating her decisions. Well this would be a good test run for her later in life. "Alright, well you know if you ever need me I'm just one phone call or flight away, right?" Autumn rolled her eyes.

"Yes Dad." Mark smiled and kissed her forehead then stood up.

"You have fun and I'll drive you to the airport tomorrow." Autumn got a surprised look on her face.

"What, no 'go to bed Autumn' or 'get some sleep you've got a big day'?" Mark smiled, was he that much of a tyrant?

"Nope, not tonight. I think you're old enough to regulate your own sleeping habits. After all you're going to be a sophomore this year." Autumn smiled, finally he was letting her take control of her life, even if it was something as small as bed time. She crossed the room and hugged Mark.

"Thanks Dad." Mark smiled and hugged her back.

"No problem. Just do me a favor?" Autumn looked up at him. "Don't stay up too late?" Autumn smiled.

"Sure thing."

A few hours later Autumn was lying in bed with the lights out. It was funny how even though she had the choice to stay up as late as she wanted, she didn't for fear of losing Mark's trust. She laughed to herself. Parents. Mark had still controlled her without controlling her. Funny old man.

_I checked my phone last night and guess what? No texts or messages from Grant or anyone else for that matter. Well other than Hannah and Morgan, those two I never have to worry about leaving me, too bad their back in middle school. My problem is with those stupid sophomores and freshmen I hung out with. I must be stupid. Like I should expect anything from them after the night that changed everything. That night was so embarrassing…I wanted to curl up into a ball and die. I couldn't even get a good defense out before I fled frantically up to my room leaving Grant alone with my dad. I knew it sucked but hey I had to worry about myself. Boy am I paying for that now. Anyway my dad yelled at Grant and told him to keep his hands to himself. Then of course he came upstairs and told me I was never dating. Great. I really wish he'd back off and let me enjoy my life. I wonder if he'd be like this for Kyle or Trent? _**(Mark's son not her crazy stepdad)**_ It's weird to think I'd have brothers, well except for the fact that if they were still alive I wouldn't be a Calaway. Oh well, I guess I'll never know what it feels like to be a sibling…well a real one. Grr. I know Trian is my brother, I really do, but he lives with Shawn and I live with Mark. We have different upbringings, values, families, and well lives. What am I ranting about? _

"Autumn!" She glanced up at John in the front seat of the rental car. Smiling she dropped her headphones.

"What boy?" John glanced at her in the rearview mirror where he found a smiling Autumn sticking out her tongue.

"I was asking you where you wanted to eat."

"Oh you know I don't care. It's free." John smiled.

"So what are you writing about back there?" Autumn closed her journal secretively.

"Stuff."

"Stuff eh?"

"Yes, stuff Mr. Canada. You know my life, poems, things like that." John rolled his eyes.

"Sure that's all that's in there. What about that boy from a few weeks ago?" Autumn sighed.

"He's a figment of the past." John sensed the sadness in her voice. If he saw that kid on the street he'd murder him Autumn had told him what happened a few hours after the incident. As always he thought Mark had overreacted.

"What you mean he still has responded?" She shrugged. "Honestly, if that scared him off he's not worth it."

"Problem is, Mark is always going to do that. He'll never let me grow up. I'm going to be forty five with thirty cats and my dad sitting in a rocking chair watching me. He'll probably shoo off the mail man for looking at me funny." John rolled his eyes.

"I don't think it's that serious," he said laughing.

"Sure." 

"Naw, I'm sure he'll give up the reigns eventually. You know how controlling he is."

"Exactly." John sighed and Autumn didn't want to talk about this anymore. "So where is Raw tonight?"

"Cincinnati." Autumn's nose crinkled.

"Ew."

"What do you mean 'ew'?"

"Like I said…ew. What's in Cincinnati? Anyway, so what are our plans for the month?" John smiled as she climbed out of the back seat and into the passenger seat.

"Well, I don't know really. I was just thinking you and I would drive up and down the road enjoying each other's company."

"Sounds wicked boring." John couldn't help himself, he loved this little girl. He couldn't believe it'd been three years since he'd first met her.

"So am I spending the whole month with you right?"

"Oh am I not good enough for you?"

"Shut up. I was just wondering."

"Ha, I'm just messing with you. Um no, actually. You're spending a week or so with Randy on his tour bus." Autumn screamed.

"Yes! I've been waiting for that cheapskate to let me ride that thing. SCORE!" John laughed and tried to keep the car on the road as she continued to do her happy dance.

"Boy, I wish you'd treat me like that."

"Shut up John Boy."

Autumn was quite happy as she walked down the arena's hallways. It was a taping for Monday Night Raw which meant she'd be there virtually all day long and late into the night. She had been told to chill either in catering or in John's locker room but NOT to roam the halls. Of course she wasn't gonna listen to that. Puhleeze! There was fun to be had, and boy was she going to have it.

So far she'd gone into every locker room and pestered all of the superstars. While somehow managing to steal all the championship belts. The stealing part wasn't really that hard. The hard part came as she tried to avoid Paul and Vince's office like the plague. Lord knows she didn't want them to catch her. She decided to make herself scarce. She was pretty sure John would be looking for her by now, but as always she'd deal with that later. Maybe once she'd stashed her bag with the belts in it then she'd play a prank on one of the superstars. Who cares? She'd play a prank on the Miz right now! Hmm. She glanced around to make sure no one was looking and then grabbed the handle only to be pulled back.

"Somehow I don't think you're supposed to be here." Autumn let go of the door handle and slowly turned around. She closed her eyes hoping she'd see someone else's eyes instead of the ones she was fearing. The large man crossed his arms over his chest.

"Oh hi Uncle Paul." Paul's lips remained tight until they broke into a smile.

"Get over here and give me a hug." Autumn released her breath and smiled as she walked into his embrace. She and Paul were quite close considering the uniqueness of their relationship.

"How's the family?" Paul smiled, little trickster.

"Let's not change the subject, you know you're in trouble right?" Autumn gave him an innocent look.

"What are you talking about? I was merely going into the 'big names' locker room to say hello to the boys." Paul frowned.

"Yeah sure, let's go." Autumn sighed and let herself be guided down the hallway by Paul's large hand. She was curious as to where they were going until it became dangerously obvious that he was taking her to see Vince. Great just great, she'd already been warned by him not to cause any ruckus. Just great.

"Um, so how bout I promise not to do this again?" Paul laughed.

"Yeah right." He opened the door and Vince was nowhere to be found. Autumn took a deep breath and darted out of the Paul's grasp, picked up her dropped bag, and ran down the hallway. Autumn ran in a light jog knowing there was no way Paul could chase her down. She glanced back and hit something.

"What's wrong with you?" Looking up she smiled as the person helped her up.

"Randy you jerk!" Randy smiled and pulled her into a hug.

"Glad to see you Summer." Autumn reeled back and punched him in the side.

"Autumn!" Randy smiled.

"John tells me you disobeyed him and apparently you've been causing quite the ruckus backstage." Autumn sighed, maybe she'd gone too far.

"Uh that's not exactly what happened."

"Sure little girl. Anyway I'm supposed to tell you that if you're not back in John's room by the time he gets back he's grounding you." Autumn sighed, why was it that John liked to play parent? Usually she'd tried to buck his authority but it didn't seem like such a good idea at the moment. She sighed as Randy laughed at her. "Next time you should try going a bit more low key than stealing all the major belts and padlocking them inside your _own_ bag."

"You're probably right."

"Yeah and um I'm not sure but I think Vince wants to see you too." Autumn shook her head, this was a bad idea.

"Autumn." Autumn's blood ran cold, just freaking great!

Autumn sat in John's locker room bored senseless. The TV was off, her cell phone was gone, and her iPod was nowhere to be found. She was being punished and she was losing it. This sucked! Who knew stealing championship belts and leaving a locker room could cause such a problem? Apparently John took his profession seriously. Well point learned for next time. She'd been confined to this room all night with no ability to leave without getting in more trouble.

She had made herself less bored by lying on her back and counting the ceiling tiles repeatedly. She didn't have a watch so she had no idea when they'd be leaving. She really needed them to hurry it up. Honestly, watching paint dry would be a more riveting experience. Great. She jumped as the door opened, it was John and Randy. She sat up and frowned, making them laugh harder.

"What's up Kid?" Autumn sighed.

"The ceiling, quite literally." John laughed and glanced at Randy. "What?"

"Been counting ceiling tiles?" Autumn looked surprised.

"Yeah, how'd you know?"

"Cause John here told me he'd left you with nothing to do other than stare at ceiling tiles." Autumn gave a sarcastic smile.

"Cute."

"You ready to go?" Autumn narrowed her eyes…what kind of stupid question was that? "Alright lemme get showered and we'll hit the road." She nodded. Randy who was in street clothes walked into the room.

"So being locked in here must've sucked."

"Yes it really did. John's a jerk." Randy pulled her close.

"Naw, you know he's a good guy. He just has this code." Autumn raised her eyebrow. "You know, protect the business. That kind of stuff. That's why he's the face of the company." Autumn thought about that. It did make sense.

"So what are you plans for me for our week on your tour bus?" Randy smiled evilly.

"I'm not quite sure yet, but it will be something to remember." She smiled and they fist bumped. Suweet! They talked for a few more minutes until Randy decided he needed to head out. He kissed the top of her head and left. Autumn took her seat on the floor yet again. A few minutes later John walked out of the shower.

"Ready to go?" She nodded still angry from being punished. John noticed her scowl. "Sit down, we need to talk."

"I'm not really in the mood to talk to you, so can we just go?" John raised his eyebrow and stood up.

"Fine, but you're not getting your stuff back until we talk. It's your choice." Autumn sighed and sat down next to the spot where John had been moments ago. John smiled, he took a moment before he spoke. "I'm sorry I had to do that." Autumn rolled her eyes.

"Sure."

"You know it's really not that bad." Sure, he could say that. "I'm sure Mark's punished you worse."

"Yeah but he's my dad, you're…well John."

"Thanks, I think." Autumn rolled her eyes. "So what you're trying to say is, I'm not your dad and I have no right to punish you, right?" She nodded.

"Pretty much." John nodded.

"Ok, well you're not my daughter so I have no right to love you." Autumn looked at him.

"What?"

"Well, you just said I'm not your dad and clearly that means I'm not your father so me loving you is stupid and I should stop." Autumn shook her head. It was quite scary to think of her life without John in it. He was her confidant, her best friend.

"No, I didn't mean it like that. I just meant," she paused. What did she mean? "Well um…" John smiled and knelt down in front of her.

"Don't worry I know what you meant." Autumn breathed a sigh of relief. That was scary. "What I mean is that just because I'm not your father doesn't mean that I don't love you nor does it mean that I'll let you act like a hoodlum either."

"You're the hoodlum." John's eyes narrowed.

"Excuse me young lady?" Autumn noted the tone in his voice, whoops.

"You know the whole 'word life' thing." John still didn't look happy. "Yeah, uh bad time for a joke. Sorry." John shook his head.

"Anyway, I just want you to know that I do love you and I'll always love you." She took a breath.

"Love you too." John gave her a soft smile. "I'm uh sorry about earlier. I shouldn't have disobeyed you, you were probably worried." John noted her ability to take responsibility and stored it in his memory for later. He was sure before the month was over that she'd disobey him again.

"No, not really. I knew you were around. Although, I didn't take kindly to you disobeying a direct order." Autumn looked at the floor.

"I know, it won't happen again." John smiled, boy had Mark trained her well. Yikes! He stood up.

"Alright so let's get to the car. We've gotta hit the road for some publicity tomorrow." Autumn nodded and stood up. She threw her book bag on her back and followed John out of the room. Man was this bag light without all those belts in it.

"So um, when am I getting my stuff back." John smiled, he was waiting for her to ask that.

"I'll give your iPod back to you in the car, but your phone is mine until Wednesday." Autumn wanted to complain, but it could be worse.

"Alright." John smiled, but one thing consistently nagged him. How'd she get all those belts to fit in her bag?

As they were driving down the road, John noticed her cloud of sadness. "You ok?" Autumn looked up from the iPod.

"Uh yep." John smiled as he shook his head.

"You're a really bad liar."

"No I'm not."

"Yeah you really are. You say you're fine when you're sitting over there playing that stupid click wheel game with that sullen look on your face."

"It's only stupid cause your hands are too big to play them."

"Shut up." Autumn laughed, she'd successfully gotten under his skin. Yay. "So what's up?" She sighed, he wouldn't let it go.

"Nothing, really I'm fine."

"There's that lying again." She was starting to get frustrated.

"I said I was fine!" She didn't mean to yell, but her patience was wearing thin. John glared angrily at her. She sighed, she couldn't afford to be punished any longer or for him to get mad enough to call her dad. "I'm sorry." John softened, there was something up for sure.

"Autumn, baby, tell me what's wrong?" She sighed she might as well.

"It's like this…."

Alright guys, there's your long chappie! Thanks for all the reviews!

Once again you guys rock!

Lemme know!


	30. Chapter 30

**Hey guys, in honor of Christmas and my love of Jesus I'm giving you an extra-long TWO PARTER! So enjoy guys. You rock!**

_"Autumn, baby, tell me what's wrong?" She sighed she might as well._

_"It's like this…." _Autumn really didn't want to tell him what was bothering her. After all that's why thoughts were made for the inside of your head and not the outside. She weighed her options, she could lie but John would probably see right through that. Or she could shoot for the truth and hope he didn't think she was a lying nut job. She sighed. "…you have four brothers right?" John glanced over at her trying to gauge if she was trying to shaft him.

"Yeah." Autumn took a deep breath.

"Well, see this is going to sound weird." John nodded, he didn't want to push her too hard.

"Maybe, maybe not. You'll never know until you tell me." She nodded.

"See I have four brothers too, but I don't know any of them." John wasn't following, there was Trian, she had more?

"Uh, what do you mean?"

"Well, there's Trian, then Mark's two sons, and then there's my brother Thunder." John did a double take…Thunder? Was she serious?

"Whoa, hang on. Thunder?" Autumn sighed and nodded.

"Yeah, he's two years older than me. I haven't seen him since I was seven though. We got split up the night the cops raided the house. I went to one precinct and he went to another." John sighed, why didn't people take children's feelings into account? He was disgusted.

"Baby, I'm sorry." Autumn shrugged, she didn't want his sympathy. She wanted his help.

"Yeah, I um miss him." John looked at her she had this downtrodden look on her face that he hadn't seen in years. He shook the thought out of his mind. Back to the present.

"So what brought all of this on?"

"I don't know. I was just thinking with all the stuff that's happened in the last year. You know my dad and Michelle and me running away. Now this Grant thing with all my friends ditching me and I couldn't help but to think back to my big brother who used to take care of me and hold me when I cry." John shook his head, poor kid. She sighed. "John, I miss having a sibling. I have Trian but he lives with Shawn and his family. Which is all well and good, but I'll never know him like I knew Thunder. He has his own life, and he doesn't really need me. Thunder does. I know he does." John opened his mouth to speak and she cut him off before he could. "No, I know what you're going to say. Does Trian need me? Yes. But does he really _need _me? No and he never will. That's just how life is." John decided to keep quiet and let her spew. "Then there's Kyle and Trent and I'm sure I'll never know them. Although I would like to, it will never happen. Thunder however, is my brother. I need him and I'm sure he needs me. I often find myself sitting and thinking back to those early days when he and I were alone in the house for days on end and all the fun we'd have. Or the times he took my punishments for me." John heard the pain in her voice. "John, I want to find my brother." Autumn took a deep breath, there it was out. Her deep dark secret. She had a brother and she missed him. John continued staring at the dark road and tried to process his thoughts. What could he say to her?

A few moments passed and he spoke. "Ok, first thing we do after we get done with publicity is start searching for your brother." Autumn smiled.

"Thanks John."

"Autumn, why'd you wait so long to tell someone?" Autumn's smile faded, she knew that would come out. "Well?" She sighed.

"Thunder was always wise. He told me if we ever got split up and I found a good home to not worry about him because he'd be alright. He knew that most parents don't take kindly to sibling groups, especially ones with our past." She paused, "He was trying to protect me." John shook his head, kids shouldn't have to worry about crap like that. He decided he'd make it his mission to see these two reunited.

About forty-five minutes passed and John decided to pull over to the side of the road. "You have your permit?"

"Yeah why?" she said not looking up from her iPod.

"Because you're going to drive." Autumn almost fainted…what? She'd only driven on side streets.

"You're serious?" John nodded and exited the car. Autumn smiled nervously and got out of the car. She couldn't believe this was happening. She sat down and realized that John was quite a bit bigger than she was.

"Alright. Now adjust your seat, then your mirrors, and when you're ready pull onto the road." Autumn looked around and did as she was told. Her heart was beating through her chest. "Ready?" She nodded as she took a deep breath and pulled out.

"Here we go." John smiled as she cautiously pulled into traffic. It wasn't really that hard considering it was 2 am and there was practically no one on the road. John knew what he was doing. He smiled as she kept her eyes firmly on the road and not listening to the radio.

About twenty minutes later Autumn had hit the 'zone'. You know the one where every new driver hits where you stop tensing so much and just relax. She even took her eyes off the road for a minute to glance beside her to see what John was doing. He was quiet and that was unusual for him, but when she glanced she saw something unexpected…he was smiling. "What?" He shrugged.

"I just can't believe how quick you grew up." Autumn rolled her eyes. "I mean think about it, just two months ago your biggest concern was your art project and now look at you driving down the high way like a pro." Autumn rolled her eyes…he was so emotional to be a dude.

"Thanks Doll Face." John gave her a look.

"Ok, that's cool, I'm secure enough with myself that I can handle that," he paused, "can I call you Sparky?" Autumn scowled.

"No, Monkey Face."

"Ooh, _that_ one hurt." Autumn sighed, one day she'd be able to outwit John. One day…

The publicity made Autumn anxious. She couldn't wait to get back to the hotel and start looking for her brother. John had promised and she knew she could take that to the bank. Only problem was John's publicity started at seven that morning and she was exhausted. He'd given her the option to stay at the hotel but that meant staying in the room all day. No thanks. So here she was at another television studio. She hoped this would be over soon. Her watch told her the time was eleven am. She groaned, there was no way she could wait until two. None. She thought about going back to the hotel, but it didn't last long. She knew better. Sighing she decided to sleep. Yeah that'd be good.

John walked over to Autumn and smiled. Poor kid. That was the one part he'd hated about the day. Either way she'd have to be bored. He decided to let her sleep and picked her up gently into his arms carrying her with her head against his chest. He had to be honest with himself, he was scared that this search for her brother would turn up empty. He knew it would break her heart if that were to happen. John sighed, that was the last thing he ever wanted to happen to this little girl. It'd happened way to many times in his estimation. Far too many.

John and Autumn were sitting in the room sprawled out in front of their laptops busily searching through the group homes they'd have to call to get the information they needed. Most of the day had been filled with small talk, but this conversation would be impactful.

"Autumn, um why after you found Mark did you not tell him about Thunder?"

"You know, after the whole 'shoving' incident I really couldn't give him my entire trust back." She sighed, "Honestly, he still doesn't have all of my trust." John shook his head, the effects of that day were far more lasting than anyone had anticipated.

"Autumn, you know Mark loves you."

"I know, but it was so scary and so close to what used to happen. I really can't forget that he treated me the one way he said he never would."

"Baby, you can't keep looking to the past. The future is all you've got."

"But it defines me John. My past defines me. I am the way I am because of my past. My nightmares, the way I look at people, how loud noises scare me…all the past."

"Screw the past! You determine your future. Your past has nothing to do with that. You choose your destiny. If you keep living in the past you'll never get the chance to enjoy the future." Autumn opened her mouth and then closed it. She had to consider John's words, they made a lot of sense. Now the problem was taking his advice and using it. This would be so weird, and scary. "Baby I'm going to go and make some of these phone calls." Autumn nodded still lost in her thoughts. She watched the door close and then hopped off the bed. She grabbed her journal and opened it to the front page. Her journal was huge. Sammy had gotten it for her when she first became her counselor. It was a part of her therapy. It was only supposed to be used for visits but it turned into a whole lifestyle for Autumn. There wasn't a day when she hadn't journaled something. Sadly her beloved journal was almost out of pages. She shrugged, she'd finish and put this one up for safe keeping. She started reading.

John walked back into the room with a whopping headache and good news. After what seemed like forever and dropping 'my name is John Cena' several hundred times he'd isolated two group homes that Thunder could be at. He frowned as he saw no sign of Autumn. Panic started to consume him. "Autumn!" He took a deep breath as he saw her form move out of the shadows and back into the light. She had tears on her cheeks. "You ok?" She nodded wiping her eyes. "What happened?" Autumn took a deep breath.

"I reread my journal entries." John nodded, he'd only seen glimpses of them, but he knew she went into detail.

"You want me to do anything?" She shook her head.

"No," she paused, "uh I was just reading them so I can finally put my past in the past." John smiled at her. She was so strong to be so small. "Yeah, now I just gotta find Thunder and my past will be there forever." John smiled.

"Well I think I can help you with the last one." Autumn's breath caught in her throat. "I think I have a pretty good idea of where he is." Autumn smiled and flung herself at John.

"Thank you thank you thank you!" She kissed his cheek.

"Well, I should find your long lost siblings more often. You just gave me a Randy hug." Autumn gave him a scowl and released him.

"Jerk."

"Hey, this jerk just found your brother." Autumn rolled her eyes then gave him a sweet smile.

"And for that I'll always be grateful."

"Good stuff, now let's go get something to eat Squirt," he said ruffling her hair. Autumn punched him in his side.

"Jerk!" John rubbed his side and followed Autumn out of the room laughing.

Part 2

_A week later_

Mark grabbed his cell phone. He smiled as he saw Autumn's picture on the caller id appeared. "Hey Beautiful, how are you?"

"Hey Daddy!"

"Are you having fun?"

"Yes, I am. Well minus the fact that John is being a tyrant." John scowled at her and she stuck her tongue out.

"You're not misbehaving are you?" Mark couldn't help but to laugh, she had been giving Cena all he could handle. He was quite impressed considering John's reputation to not get upset easily.

"No sir."

"Are you lying?"

"No! Daddy, I'm not lying. I've been an angel." She heard John laughing in the background and threw a pillow at him. Mark heard his laughing and shook his head. If they were talking that meant he wasn't being too hard on her.

"So what have you guys been up to?"

"Oh nothing much. Raw was yesterday and today we had some MORE press stuff. John is too freaking busy!" Mark laughed. "But tomorrow we're off to Florida again, but this time John promises not to lock me outside." John threw the pillow back at her but Autumn ducked. "Ha! You missed, loser!"

"Well that sounds like fun."

"Yeah it could be. We shall see." Autumn glanced at John who nodded. She took a deep breath. "Daddy, I have something to tell you." Mark held his breath. That didn't' sound good at all.

Mark sat in his recliner. Dumfounded, how did she not tell him after three years? He had tears slipping down his cheeks. He knew that she was affected by that day he'd gotten drunk and shoved her, but he hadn't known that she actually still hadn't given him her whole trust. Or that she was afraid that if she messed up enough that side would come back out. He was disgusted with himself all over again. He buried his face in his hands. What kind of father was he? She couldn't even trust him with the biggest part of her life from birth until she was taken away. Mark wanted to be happy for her, but he couldn't help but to wallow in his own pity. She couldn't trust him. Him. Mark. Her father. The guy who'd stayed up with her when she was sick. The guy who held her as she woke up screaming countless nights. After all that, she still couldn't trust him. He wanted to throw up. His own kid couldn't trust him. He shook his head, he had to get over this. He'd have two children to earn trust from, now. Mark stood up, he needed to go work off his aggression, confusion, and _pain_.

Autumn lay back on the bed drastically full of turmoil. She was going to meet her brother for the first time in years in a week. John had set it up with the group home where Thunder was that she and Mark would pick him up. Once he'd gotten the information the red tape wasn't all that bad, considering that Thunder was about to 'age out' of the foster care system in a matter of months. After talking it over with Mark, they'd decided that it would be better for her to finish her month with John early and meet up with her brother sooner. She still couldn't believe that in seven days she'd be reunited with her brother. "Hey kid, move over." Autumn sighed and slid toward the window.

"What's up?" John wrapped his arm around her as he put his massive leg on top of her comforter.

"You ok?" She shrugged.

"Yeah I guess. A bit nervous though."

"You should be."

"Thanks John," she said sarcastically.

"No, I'm serious. You haven't seen him in eight years, but guess what? He's still your brother and he's still going to love you." Autumn sighed, if only she could be sure. John looked at her, he knew she was getting overly nervous. John pulled her close to him and she rested her head on his chest. Even though John wasn't Thunder, he was probably about as good a brother she could have.

A few minutes later John slid out of the bed and covered Autumn up. She must have been exhausted to fall asleep that quickly. He closed his eyes and decided he could take a shower in the morning. His sleep would be good tonight.

Sometime that night John was jolted out of his sleep by screams. He turned the light on and watched Autumn flail violently under the sheets. "Don't hurt me!" "I'm sorry!" John shook his head, what had the kid been through? He walked over there quickly and grabbed her from under the cover and started rubbing her back. Quickly she opened her eyes gasping for air. "I-Can't-BREATH!" John nodded and grabbed her quickly and took her and carried into the bathroom. He quickly turned both the hot water on in the sink and the bath tub. He set Autumn down on the toilet seat and made her take deep breaths. She was still gasping. He grabbed rag off the wall and set it under the hot water and placed it on her face.

"Deep breaths Baby." Autumn did as she was told and took deep breaths. John's heart rate slowly went down as he saw Autumn's breathing return to normal. Thank God. He turned off the shower and then the sink. Autumn smiled as she glanced up at John.

"Thanks dude," she said still slightly out of breath.

"No problem." John smiled and snickered at her.

"What?"

"You look like a wet mop." Autumn eyes shot open and she looked into the mirror. She did, her hair was wet and her eyes were red.

"Great." John walked up behind her.

"Well look on the bright side…you could give Bozo the Clown a run for his money." Autumn turned and shoved him. She scowled as she walked out of the bathroom. John laughed he couldn't help himself.

"Well I'm up for the next six hours, what should we do?" John shook his head.

"Not unh. Sorry we've got an early flight and there's no way you're going to be all cranky. Nope, hop back in that bed sing yourself a lullaby or count sheep, but you are GOING to bed." Autumn smiled.

"Nice try, but my dad says I can go to bed when I want to." John raised his eyebrow.

"I know Mark's rules, these are John's rules. GO TO BED," he said with a smile on his face. Autumn shook her head and stuck out of her lip. "You're cute when you pout. Now bed." She frowned and walked over toward the bed.

"Tyrant," she mumbled.

"I heard that."

"Well hear this…you're an insensitive jerk." John's eyes narrowed and he crossed the room.

"What did you say?" She shrugged.

"You're an insensitive jerk." John grunted, all he wanted to do was sleep. Now he'd have to see what was wrong with her.

"Sit down." Autumn rolled her eyes. "Now." She sighed, but sat anyway. "What is wrong with you?"

"You're a jerk. I mean I just had a panic attack and you tell me to suck it up and go to sleep. That makes you a jerk." John thought about it.

"OK, I just helped you through that same panic attack, so talking to me like that makes you an ungrateful brat." Autumn looked at him angrily. "What? You can't handle the truth now?" She was getting agitated.

"No, I can handle the truth. You're just lying." John smiled and raised his eyebrow.

"Oh, I'm a liar now?" Autumn shook her head, he was twisting her words.

"I never said that," she said crossing her arms over her chest.

"No, you just said I was lying. What do you call people who lie…liars." Autumn shook her head, he had a point.

"Fine, if I'm calling you all these names I can just go and find Phil (CM Punk). I'm sure he'd be happy to have me." John shrugged.

"Ok, just make sure you know that if you walk out that door, not only am I going to ground you I am going to call your dad as well." Autumn grunted, why'd he have to pull the dad card?

"Fine, I won't go." John sighed, he couldn't let her freak out not at this moment.

"Baby, what's wrong?"

"Nothing," she said forcefully.

"You're lying just tell me the truth. I just wanna help."

"Now who's calling people names?" John was losing his patience.

"Autumn," he said stern manner. Autumn sighed, he wasn't going to let this die. She had to say something.

"It's nothing really, I was just freaked out by the dream. I'm sorry I called you names." She let out a clearly fake yawn. "I guess I'm still pretty tired. Good night." John gave her a frown.

"Alright, you're off the hook for now." Autumn smiled. "But the conversation is still not over." Autumn sighed and lay back.

"Night John."

"Night Autumn." Autumn lay back. How could she tell her favorite person in the world that she had a dream where he helped her stepfather beat her? She shuddered. Sleep wouldn't come for her tonight.

XXX

John looked at Autumn. She was pale and hadn't been sleeping well in the last week. He knelt down in front of her. "Baby, are you ok?" Autumn looked up from the ground with bags under her eyes and nodded.

"Yeah, I'm just tired." John sighed inwardly. She was hurting and wouldn't tell him how to help. The boarding call was made for her flight to Houston.

"Alright, I guess this is goodbye." Autumn smiled and shook her head.

"No, just see you later." John nodded and pulled her close to his chest. He kissed her hair.

"Call me and let me know how it goes." She nodded. "And don't be nervous, ok?" Again she nodded, it was too late for the last one. The call sounded yet again and Autumn broke his embrace. John couldn't help but to feel like he was watching a chapter in her life end. He shook his head, hopefully the next chapter would be better for her.

Autumn boarded the plane full of turmoil and anxiety. She didn't feel well and she was a ball of nerves. How would she face Mark after what she told him? How could she ever look him in the eye? She knew she'd hurt him. She wanted to cry but didn't. She was tired of crying. She was just plain tired….

A few hours later, Mark watched his daughter walk off that plane. He wanted to be sick. She was pale and skinnier than before with large bags under her eyes. Upon seeing him she sprinted towards him and wrapped her arms around his waist. "Daddy." Mark smiled, his ladybug. He knew they would need to talk, but all he wanted to do right now was hold his baby.

XXXX

It was the day and Autumn thought she would puke she was so nervous. Mark had driven her to the group home where they'd found Thunder to be. Autumn was frozen in place. "Ladybug, its ok. Come on." Autumn shook her head.

"No, I can't do this." Mark knelt down.

"Autumn Mackenzie, yes you can. You're fine. Take a deep breath. You've been waiting for this. So suck it up, there's no way that Calaways back down." Autumn frowned, boy did he have a way of making you feel better.

"Fine," she said harshly. Mark smiled, it was all a part of being a parent…know how your kid responds. Autumn followed behind Mark wanting nothing more than to turn around. Her stomach was in knots. Mark glanced back at her clearly freaked out.

"Put some pep in your step. You act like you're walking the plank or something." Autumn frowned, she knew he was messing with her to keep her emotions in check. A short plump woman with graying hair walked towards them.

"Mr. Calaway?" Mark nodded and shook her hand.

"Yes, I'm Mark and this is my daughter Autumn." The lady smiled.

"Yes, Thunder's sister. Well come along there's no time to waste." Autumn gave the lady a nasty look behind her back, it was like they were inconveniencing her. She was the one who hadn't seen her brother in eight years. They followed the lady down a maze of hallways until she stopped in an office area similar to Sammy's back in the day. "Alright just a minute. I'm going to go and see if he's ready to go." Mark thanked her and turned to Autumn.

"Ladybug, are you alright?" Autumn shook her head, she was pale and was chewing at her nail. Mark pulled her towards a chair and sat her in his lap. They hadn't done it in a while, but he couldn't think of anything else to help her at the moment. He started rubbing her back. It took a few minutes but her color returned and she seemed to relax. "Better now?" She took a deep breath and nodded. "Honey, you don't have to be so nervous. I'm sure he's just as excited to see you as you are to him."

"Yeah, but he's different now. Eight years Daddy. Eight." Mark pulled her close, he really couldn't fathom what she was going through right now.

A few moments later Autumn let out a whisper. "What if he doesn't like me?" Mark shook his head, she was making herself sick with worry.

"Stop," he said firmly. "You can 'what if' all you want, but you don't have the time. Take a deep breath, it's all going to be fine." Autumn frowned, that's what he said the last time.

"I'm just saying—" She didn't get to finish because she heard shuffling from the other side of the room. Autumn took a deep breath, this was the moment of truth. All her fears had come to a head. Here he comes. The door opened and a tall slender boy walked through it. He had his hair low on the sides but long in the front letting it hang over his eyes and wore a baggy long sleeved shirt and a pair of cargo shorts. Then she saw that scar. That defining scar. It came down from his eyebrow to his cheekbone on his left side. Now it was real. This was Thunder, this was her brother. Autumn's breath caught in her throat…"Thunder?" She choked out. The boy's scowl drifted away.

"Autumn!" Before another moment passed the two were across the room and collapsed into each other's arms.

Hope you guys liked it…lemme know what you think.

Lot's more to come!

Merry Christmas!


	31. Chapter 31

_Two Days later_

Mark smiled as he looked in at Thunder's room. He and Autumn were working on decorating it and putting all his stuff away. Earlier that day they all had gone out to buy him a new wardrobe considering that baggy long sleeve shirts would be treacherous under the scorching Houston sun. It was good to see another side of Autumn, she was so…open. He shook his head, he'd never seen her like that. It seemed like when Thunder was around that carefree side shone through more brightly than Mark ever knew possible. Well, that could be used to his advantage.

"Alright guys, it's time for dinner." Both kids looked up at him, Autumn smiled.

"Yes sir. We'll be down in a minute." Mark nodded and walked out of the room. Thunder looked at Autumn. She'd grown so much in eight years, he couldn't stop smiling as he looked at her. His only problem lied in the fact that she was so obedient. She wasn't a dog, she had a mind and feelings. He shook his head. Autumn stood up and brushed herself off. "Ready?"

"Um, sure." Autumn nodded and walked out of the room and into the bathroom. Thunder walked behind her shaking his head. He thought people only washed their hands before a meal on the Brady Bunch. He followed suit and followed his sister down the stairs toward the dining room where they ate.

Mark smiled as the two bantered between themselves, but he couldn't help but feel left out. Every time he tried to join the conversation he was rebuffed and met with a fiery glare from Thunder. Mark chuckled to himself, he wasn't sure but he didn't think the kid liked him very much. He shrugged it off as he watched the two recently reunited siblings enjoy their time together. Honestly he couldn't get upset if they wanted to reacquaint themselves, he'd just wait it out. So he sat there quietly eating and just watched.

Autumn was happy, she had her brother and her dad. Things were good. She was washing the dishes and Thunder had begrudgingly agreed to dry. She knew before long Mark's orders and Thunder's free spirited nature was going to cause some epic problems. She just hoped it would be a ways off.

"So, what do you do for fun around here?" Autumn smiled as she wiped soap off her nose. She still couldn't believe that her brother was back. His voice was so deep it still threw her off.

"Not much really. I paint or go the mall. Should be getting my license in a few months, then I can go more places." Thunder accepted the plate she handed him and shook his head.

"So you have certain places you're allowed to go to?" She nodded.

"Yeah, he doesn't want me roaming around alone. As long as I have someone with me though I can go downtown, but no further than that."

"Sky, you're fifteen. He's gotta give you more control than that." Autumn was a little shocked. She hadn't acknowledged her full name in eight years, in fact only the two of them knew it. Plus he was picking at her. "You probably have a bed time too, don't ya?" Autumn didn't respond as Thunder began laughing at her. "What's wrong with you? I know you're not that sensitive." Autumn threw the rag down and began walking away. Thunder sighed, he'd forgotten how easy it was to make her cry. He wrapped his arm around her shoulder. She tried to shrug him off but he was too strong. "Look, Sky I'm sorry. It's gonna take a while for me to get used to having to look out for you again. I'm used to being alone." She sighed and looked up at him. "Forgive me?"

"Yeah I do. I forgot how much of a jerk you were." She sighed, "All is forgiven." Thunder smiled then pushed her away playfully.

"Now let's finish these dishes before the dictator comes back." Autumn laughed and they went back to doing dishes.

They soon finished and headed into the movie room to catch a late flick. Of course Thunder wanted to see blood and guts while Autumn wanted to see a drama. They compromised with 2012. Soon they were stretched out enjoying the movie. Halfway in the screen paused and Mark's face appeared. Autumn groaned.

"Yes?" Mark laughed, he could see them sitting there looking like he just ruined their favorite movie ever.

"I just wanted to say good night and remind you that have a ten o clock doctor's appointment tomorrow." Autumn groaned, she'd forgotten.

"Ok." Mark nodded. "Oh wait, can I um go to Morgan's pool party on Friday?" Mark moved his eyes and chewed his bottom lip.

"Is this your middle school clique?"

"Yes sir."

"Parents?" Autumn sighed.

"Yes sir."

"Boys?"

"Dad!" Mark laughed.

"Ok, what time?"

"5:30 to 9." Mark winced.

"I have a meeting to go to. Can you get someone to pick you up?" Autumn sighed, she knew this would happen.

"No, I can't because they all say I'm too far out of the way." Mark rolled his eyes, twenty minutes was not that far. Thunder hated to see the disappointment in his sister's face. It always had made him uneasy.

"I can take her." They both looked at him with raised eyebrows. "My last foster family let me get my permit all I have to do is take the drivers' test."

"Can you pass?" Thunder nodded.

"Easily." There was no need to tell them about all the cars he boosted or his obsession with race cars.

"Alright, I'll set up an appointment with the DMV tomorrow after your sister's doctor's appointment. If you pass I'll put you on the insurance and you can take your sister." Thunder nodded.

"When I pass what will I drive?" Mark rolled his eyes, bold child. He raised his eyebrow. "Well you're obviously taking your truck and I'm pretty sure I can't take one of the bikes, so?" Mark ground his teeth.

"Pass the test first." Thunder smiled. Autumn watched on in awe. Few people in the world had enough guts to talk to Mark like that. She was impressed. "Night Ladybug."

"Night Dad."

"Goodnight Thunder."

"Night Mark." With that the screen returned to normal and the movie resumed. Autumn was still in awe of her older brother. He was so cool. She settled back into the couch smiling to herself. Thunder watched her, he was glad she was smiling. For so many years he wondered if she'd ever smile again. He sighed. No need to go there, he turned toward the movie. The movie finished soon after and they were left with silence and little to do.

"Thanks for offering to take me." Thunder smiled at his little sister. She was so beautiful.

"Oh trust me, I did it for me as well as for you. I can't stand being cooped up in this house all day. Having a license will give me some freedom." She laughed as she sat up stretching.

"Yeah, not in this house."

"What do you mean?"

"Um Mark is going to give you rules up the butt. Trust me, having a license is going to come with a lecture, rules, a curfew. Oh trust me, you're not going to feel lucky at all." Thunder chewed the inside of his lip, he'd see about that.

XXX

Autumn was smiling happily behind Mark as he lectured Thunder on the rules and responsibilities of having a license. Thunder was scowling at her. He hated it when she was right, she was such a little gloat. Thunder was over it. He hated 'authority' figures. They were all so full of themselves. He sighed as Mark moved into the consequences portion of his lecture. Blah blah blah. Then something suddenly became clear.

"To pay for the car, you're getting a job working at my gym part time." His head sprung up.

"What?" Mark shrugged.

"You heard me." Thunder rolled his eyes, all he wanted was that cherry red Honda civic. It was a beauty.

"If I'm working how am I supposed to go to school?" Mark rolled his eyes.

"It's a _part_-time job. After school three days a week."

"What if I wanna play a sport or something? This isn't fair." Mark shrugged.

"One if you wanna play a sport I'd be willing to shift your schedule and two this is totally fair. You live in this house you work." Thunder tilted his head towards Autumn.

"What about her? She doesn't work." Mark nodded.

"Yeah she does she has chores." Autumn smiled, she didn't really want to work. She hated cleaning toilets.

"This isn't fair," he said through gritted teeth.

"Yeah it is. Besides when she gets a car, she'll be working right alongside of you." Autumn crossed her arms and poked her lip out. How'd she get involved in all of this? "Now go get cleaned up or something, I've got some phone calls to make." Thunder just sat there. Mark turned to Autumn. "You've been slacking on your chores, no chores no party, got it?" She nodded.

"Yes sir." Mark left the room and Autumn started gloating again. "Told you so."

"Shut up." She just smiled.

"Welcome to the world of a Calaway kid." Thunder sat up, he'd been meaning to talk to her about that.

"How come you took his name?" She shrugged.

"He adopted me. Its kind what happens." Autumn tried to play it off, but she knew this would lead down a road she didn't want to go down.

"I know he adopted you," he rolled his eyes. "Why did you give up Mama's name? You remember, she gave us her name so we'd always be a part of her, you know united." Autumn stared at her feet. She was kinda unsure about what to say.

"I um don't know. She wasn't ever around." Thunder rolled his eyes.

"She couldn't be, you know Trent had her twisted." Autumn continued staring at the floor.

"She wasn't ever there for me when I needed her, Mark was." Thunder's blood was boiling, had she forgotten everything? He clenched his fists.

"She was there, you just don't remember." Autumn felt her chest tighten with anger.

"You're right, I don't remember. You know why? Cause it never happened. Night after night I cried myself to sleep hoping she'd make it stop but she didn't. He beat me, I was a slave, and she did nothing about it." Thunder stood up.

"She tried, don't you get it, she tried! She couldn't do anything because she was afraid he'd kill her." Autumn refused to cower back as he towered over her. She was stronger than that. She refused to back down.

"Well he practically killed us! Between the beatings and starvation it's a wonder how we ever made it out." Autumn felt the blood rise to her ears in a flash of fire. "T, I _needed _her. Do you remember that night?" Thunder turned his head, he'd buried that night deep long ago. "Do you?" she was yelling.

"Sort of," he said between bites on his lip.

"Well I remember it perfectly. You were tending to Mama after another one of their 'fights' and I was downstairs getting drinks. I remember tripping over something and spilling a drink. The next thing I knew I had marks on my back and I was alone in the closet. I screamed for you, I cried I wanted someone anyone to help me, but none of you came." Thunder watched as his sister relived those memories, her face was contorted with anger and disgust, he wanted to comfort her but he thought better of it. "I was in there for days. Alone in the dark. No one came. All I wanted was a hug or to know someone cared, but it never happened. Then the cops showed up and I never saw any of you again." He heard the hurt in her voice and he couldn't deal. Thunder turned away, he didn't mean to make her relive that. He slowly walked closer to her and wrapped his arms around her. He placed his head on top of hers.

"If it's any help, I was tied to my bed. I tried to break free but it was no use. You know I would have helped you if I could." Autumn nodded into his chest and wrapped her arms around him tighter. It was so good to be back in his warm embrace.

After a few minutes they broke apart and Autumn wiped away her tears. "I hope you're not mad at me." Thunder felt like a jerk.

"No Sky, I'm not. I was being a jerk." She looked up at him. He had a good six inches on her.

"You were earlier." He took a deep breath.

"Yeah I was, but I'm not anymore. I see now why you did what you did and I don't blame you at all for it." She smiled.

"Thanks." Thunder shook it off, he didn't want to be in this house any longer.

"You wanna come help me clean out my car?" Autumn smiled at him.

"You like saying that don't you?"

"Very much so." She smiled, she was glad her big brother was finally back. Things were looking up for him for once, she hoped they'd stay that way.

"You should thank Mark." Thunder scoffed. Her eyes narrowed. He sighed, he hated that look in her eye. The one that said, 'stop being a jerk'.

"Why?"

"Because he's my dad and because he bought you a car when he didn't have to." Thunder rolled his eyes. "He didn't have to T, you owe him at least a thank you and you know it." He sighed.

"Fine, I'll do it the next time I see him, ok?"

"Ok." Thunder walked outside and close the door behind him. Autumn shrugged and went into the movie room.

Mark shook his head from the top of the stairs where he'd watched the whole encounter. It seemed that these two kids needed him, just in drastically different ways.

XXX

Thunder sat back on his bed. These last two days were so complicated. He was exhausted on all counts. He was just glad it was the summer so at least he'd have a while before he had to start his senior year. There could be an upside to living the good life with Calaway, at least he had his little sister. He smiled to himself, and a car. Man was that thing a beaut. It was in prime shape and with a fully decked out sound system. Now he'd just have to figure a way to pay for those rims.

The door opened and Thunder sat up as he watched Mark enter the room. Thunder immediately went into defense mode. Mark uneasily walked into the room. He could sense the tension that was emitting itself in droves off Thunder.

"Hey, I want to talk to you." Thunder nodded. "Mind if I sit down?" Thunder shrugged.

"It's your house."

"It's your room." Thunder rolled his eyes. "Seriously, you live here, your room your domain."

"Yeah you can sit down." Mark grabbed a chair from the desk in the corner and sat down. He took a moment to glance at the young man in front of him who looked like he'd been carrying the weight of the world for far too long.

"So, I wanted to say I'm glad you're here. I know your sister is extremely happy that you're here." Thunder nodded. "With that being said, I just want to make sure we're on the same page."

"Ok." Mark nodded.

"Good. I need you to know that she is by far the most important thing in my life. I trust her with you and I need to know you'll take care of her when I'm not around." Thunder rolled his eyes.

"I know Mark, she is my sister after all." Mark nodded.

"I'm glad you know. I appreciate it." Mark grunted. "I wanted to know if you want to go with her for a week or so on the road before she has to start soccer conditioning."

"On the road?"

"Yeah you know, travel with the wrestlers as they go from show to show." Thunder shook his head.

"Why?"

"Because she is pretty close to a couple of them Cena and Orton namely."

"Like John Cena and Randy Orton?" Mark raised his eyebrows.

"Yeah, she's close to them. They're family to her, like brothers or uncles. Whatever." Thunder thought about it. "Plus, Shawn's bringing your brother so that should be fun." Thunder's eyes darted around the room.

"What? We don't have a brother." Mark grunted, whoops.

"She didn't tell you?"

"Tell me what?" Thunder was getting aggravated.

"She should tell you."

"NO!" Mark raised his eyebrow, Thunder sensed he'd crossed a line. That was the last thing he needed right now. "Um, look just please tell me what you're talking about." Mark sighed, this wouldn't be easy.

"I'll tell you the basics but you need to talk to Autumn." Thunder nodded. "Ok, well you and her have a half-brother named Train he's eight years old. He lives with a friend of mine." Thunder was confused.

"Wait, why doesn't he live with my mother?" Mark sighed, he really didn't want to tell him this. Mark stood up.

"You should talk to your sister." Thunder shook his head and grabbed Mark's forearm.

"Please tell me."

"I don't know how to say this, but your mother passed away." Thunder deflated and his hand fell to his side. He let his gaze drop to his muscular legs. Mark sighed, he could see the pain in his eyes.

"How long?"

"Thunder…"

"How long?" Mark's heart broke for the kid.

"A little over two years." After a long pause Mark spoke. "I'm sorry, I really didn't want you to find out like this." Thunder shook his head.

"No, it's ok. Um thank you for telling me." Mark nodded and turned to leave.

"Let me know if you need anything, ok?" Thunder looked up trying not to cry and nodded.

"Yeah, thanks," he said just above a whisper. Mark nodded and left the room. Thunder lay back and sighed. His whole life had just changed drastically. He'd lost his mother but now he had another sibling. Why didn't Autumn tell him? He shook his head. He was _**sure**_ going to find out.

A/N: Just wanna clear somethings up….Autumn was 7 when she was taken away and 15 now, Thunder was 9 and 17 now, she was with Sammy in counseling for 5 years.

Thanks guys, I love reviews. As always you guys rock.

Shoutouts to Mattagot for ALWAYS being the first to review! Gotta love it!


	32. Chapter 32

Autumn sighed as she pushed her cereal around the bowl. Thunder hadn't spoken to her all morning. She didn't know why but it was killing her none the less. She couldn't deal with having him be that close and yet a million miles away. "T, can you pass me the sugar?" Without even glancing her way, Thunder slid the sugar across the table while never taking his eyes off his car magazine. Autumn looked heartbroken and Mark just shook his head. Autumn suddenly lost her appetite.

"Daddy, may I be excused?" Mark nodded sympathetically and Autumn went upstairs. With only Thunder at the table Mark figured he'd have to enact some fatherly advice even if the kid didn't want it…or know he needed it. Mark put down his paper and turned toward Thunder.

"Thunder, can we talk?" Thunder rolled his eyes and put his magazine down.

"Yes?" Mark looked into the boy's eyes, they were full of hurt and confusion. He couldn't help but see the similarities between Thunder and Autumn's eyes. Autumn's had a comforting glow, none of that was found in Thunder's eyes. He had a hard cold vibe that emitted itself off eyes and into your being. It was a bone rattling stare.

"Have you talked to your sister about what you found out last night?" Thunder rolled his eyes, this was none of his business.

"No," he said with the annoyance dripping off the word.

"Well you should."

"When I feel like it."

"No, very soon, like now." Thunder shook his head slightly, who'd this guy think he was?

"When I feel like it."

"Oh?" Mark stood up. "Because the way I see it, you're hurting her far more by not talking to her than you ever thought possible." Thunder looked at him confused. "You still think of your sister being seven when little games like that worked, but she's fifteen now and she's been through a lot. If you shut her out, it will eat her alive until one day she cracks. Learn from my mistakes and go talk to her." Thunder stared at his bowl. "I'm warning you, once she pushes you away, it's hell to get back." Man, did he know about that. Mark picked up his and Thunder's bowls leaving Thunder with his thoughts. Thunder grunted, great he was feeling guilty now. Why was life so complicated?

Slowly he walked upstairs and knocked on the door. No response. He sighed. "Sky, I know you're in there." Still no response. Oh well he'd just walk in. He found her sitting on her bed journaling with her headphones on. He smiled, she'd always enjoyed writing. For some reason he became oddly nervous. He shifted slightly then touched her shoulder. She jumped and then scowled.

"What?" Thunder was still nervous.

"Um, can I sit down?" She shrugged.

"It's your choice." Thunder sat down slowly and took a deep breath. He rubbed his hand through his hair.

"We need to talk." Autumn rolled her eyes.

"Oh really? Cause last time I check you didn't want to talk to me at all." Thunder nodded.

"That was true, but now I want to talk."

"Well tough cookies, get out." Thunder was thrown off, he'd never known her to be belligerent.

"Sky…"

"No, get out. You don't get to call the shots. I do, now leave." Thunder stayed there. There was no way he was going to move. He outweighed her by at least forty pounds, if she wanted him out she was going to have to drag him. Autumn grunted and got off the bed. She began muttering under her breath. Thunder turned around to face her just in time to be tackled to the floor. Soon they were screaming and rolling on the ground.

"What is wrong with you?" The only response he got was grunts. Thunder was surprised by her strength and was shocked by how hard it was to keep her off of him. Luckily, she was plucked off of him by Mark.

"Calm down." In an instant she did as she was told. "Do I need to ask what was going on in here?" He was met with silence. "I thought so." Mark released Autumn's arm and headed towards the door. "You two need to talk, and if I have to come back in here you're both going to pay for it, got it?" Thunder rolled her eyes and Autumn nodded. Mark left the room. Autumn headed towards her easel and picked up a brush.

"Um what are you doing?"

"What does it look like, I'm going to paint."

"It's kinda hard to talk to you with you turned away from me." She shrugged.

"Deal with it." Thunder sighed, he hadn't remembered her being this way. What had gone on in those eight years? He sighed, a little bit at a time.

"Sky, why didn't you tell me about Mama?" Autumn stopped mid stroke and took a deep breath.

"Mark told you." She shook her head and went back to painting.

"Yes Mark told me, why didn't you?" Autumn was quiet for a moment.

"You wouldn't have believed me." Thunder choked.

"What?"

"You wouldn't have believed me. " She grunted. "Look, I don't want to talk about this." Thunder stood up.

"Well we're going to, what are you talking about? Why would I not believe you about Mama dying?" Autumn had enough.

"Because, she was all you cared about. Your whole life was about protecting her. It would have killed you to know that she died." She sighed, "You would have done what you always do and pretend it didn't happen. So rather than making you pretend it didn't happen I just wasn't going to tell you." Thunder took a deep breath to control his anger.

"You don't tell me what I can and can't handle, alright? She was my mother too." Autumn rolled her eyes.

"She was only your mother," she muttered. Thunder heard it loud and clear though and was across the room in a flash.

"What did you say?" Autumn shrugged.

"T, you know she only wanted you. I was the drunken mistake." Thunder took a step back he never wanted her to know about that. He winced at the lack of emotion in her voice.

"Sky…" She put her free hand up to wave off his pity.

"No, I don't want your pity. It's the truth, it's in the past." Thunder put his hand on her shoulder.

"Sky."

"No Thunder, I'm fine really." She turned around with a slight smile on her face. "Look, I'm fine with it. I have a dad who loves me unconditionally. He's there whenever I need him and he won't let anything bad happen to me. I had a mama, but that's in the past, I have a daddy though and that's all I want." Thunder took a step back to admire his baby sister, something had definitely happened to her. He was shocked, but in a good way. He gave a soft smile.

"So you're ok?"

"Yeah, I am." Thunder nodded.

"Good deal." Thunder faltered for a second and then sighed he opened his mouth, but Autumn beat him to it though.

"So I guess you want to know about Trian too." Thunder smiled, she always did know what he was thinking.

"Yeah, why does he live somewhere else?" Autumn took a deep breath, this would definitely cause a rift.

XXX

Autumn was on the floor playing cards with John while he stretched. Thunder was stretched out on the couch with his iPod on. The siblings hadn't spoken a word to each other in five days. Thunder had exploded at Autumn over her selfishness. Words were said and they hadn't so much as looked at each other since. Neither of them was willing to relent and it seemed like their similarities were what was driving them apart. Honestly it drove Mark nuts. He couldn't deal with it and sent them both regardless of their spout.

Randy walked into the room and felt the tension. He cringed and looked at John who shrugged. Great. "Um what's up guys?" Autumn shrugged and Thunder didn't acknowledge his presence. Randy brushed it off and walked into the room anyway. He pulled Autumn's leg dragging her across the floor and started tickling her. "Thought you could ignore me, huh?" Autumn giggled and shook her head.

"Who me? Never." Thunder just watched on, they acted like he wasn't in the room. He grunted and sat up.

"I'm going for a walk." John didn't stop stretching.

"No you're not." Thunder had about had it with John. Who'd he think he was, at least Mark left him alone.

"Why not?" John sat up.

"Because my match is about to start and its late. You never know who's hiding in the shadows at one of these house shows." Thunder rolled his eyes.

"I think I can handle it." Thunder turned to walk out of the door but John stopped him.

"I said no."

"I said yes. Now move." John raised his eyebrow and glanced back at Randy who shrugged.

"No, sit down. I'm in charge, deal with it." Thunder made a move to leave again. "Fine, you wanna walk, I'll just call Mark and send you back. I'm sure he'll be pleased to hear about this." Thunder almost laughed, what did he care what Mark thought? Autumn shook her head, she knew Mark would freak over something like this.

"T, just let it go." Thunder turned to his sister.

"Shut up brat!" Autumn was taken back, she'd only tried to help.

"Fine, screw you too!" John rolled his eyes.

"Autumn!" Autumn shrank back and crossed her arms. Randy put his arm around her. John turned to Thunder. "Shut up and take a seat." Thunder rolled his eyes and walked out of the room. He was so tired of people telling him what do all the time. He didn't bother to glance back he just kept walking forward. He walked until he found catering and then sat down in the corner. He kicked the chair next to him. He hated it when his hanger got the best of him. Now he was sure he'd just made his life more complicated than it needed to be. It wasn't like he cared about being punished it was more that somehow he'd always seemed to screw up. He couldn't do anything right.

_Eight year old Thunder heard a crash come from downstairs. He jumped up from his spot in the corner near the closet and ran downstairs. He saw his six year old sister being drug across the room by her hair. He ran to her but was stopped by a pair of arms. _

"_No Thunder, this is her fault." Thunder struggled under the man's arm and shook his head._

"_No, I've got to help her." The little boy with shaggy brown hair and brown eyes mustered all he had under the man's forearm. He was the man in the family, he had to protect his sister. He had to. _

"_Stop, or you'll get it too." Thunder shook his head and began struggling harder. He had to get to her, she was screaming. Her screaming intensified with every blow. He bit the man's arm and ran across the room. Trent released Autumn's hair and turned toward Thunder._

"_Come to save your sister?" Thunder glanced at his sister who was clinging to her bear she'd just found on the floor and looked up at Thunder petrified. Her cheeks were flushed and she was whimpering. He knew he had to help her, she was just a baby. "Well, what are you going to do to stop me?" Thunder knew what that meant he clenched his fists and tried to tackle him, but being an eight year old boy he couldn't do much damage and was easily thrown aside. Trent grabbed his arm and drug the small boy towards the front of the house. _

"_Sky!" He screamed, the little girl was too scared to respond. Her breathing was deep and she had tears streaming down her cheeks. He started struggling with all his might but it was no use. He was thrown into the closet and heard the door lock shut. _

"_I lost count, you can blame yourself because now I have to start over." Thunder shuddered, he couldn't believe it. He covered his ears as he heard the screaming resume. He kicked the door and screamed his lungs out but it was no use. She was in pain and it was his fault. _

Thunder wiped the lone tear in his eye. His whole life he'd been a screw up. He screwed up then and he most certainly screwed up now. He had lied to Autumn when he told her to find a family and not tell them about him. It wasn't because of their history, it was because he knew he'd end up ruining it for her. He grunted as his cell phone rang: Mark.

"Thunder, what's going on?" Thunder was shocked by the tone in Mark's voice. It wasn't authoritative or bullying, but truly concerned.

"Nothing." Mark knew a lie when he heard it.

"Come on, what's bothering you?" Thunder sighed, he was never one for mushy stuff.

"Can I come home?" He knew it wasn't his home, but how else could he describe it?

"You know you can if you want to. I won't make you stay." Thunder smiled, he did enjoy how fair Mark was. "But you know your little brother is going to be there for Monday's show." Thunder sighed, he'd forgotten about that.

"You're right." Mark heard the conflicted tone and shook his head, this kid needed a lot of affection. "After I meet him, then can I come home?"

"Yeah, I'll book the flight."

"Thanks Mark."

"No problem, but you're going to have to face what's bothering you it won't go away." Gee, thanks Dr. Phil.

"Sure."

"Alright, why don't you head back to the locker room and we'll talk later?"

"Ok." Thunder hung up the phone and figured he might as well go back. Mark had been nicer than he needed to be. Thunder may not have liked authority figures but he knew someone worth respect when he met them. The walk back to the locker room was uneventful and he opened the door to find Autumn laying on the floor staring at the monitor. He shrugged and walked in.

"See you came back."

"Yup." Autumn glanced at him and then resumed watching the match.

"My dad call you?" Thunder gave a slight chuckle.

"Yeah." She nodded.

"Figured. You're in deep." Thunder raised his eyebrow.

"I don't think so." Autumn turned and looked at him.

"You serious?"

"Yeah. He seemed pretty calm on the phone. No yelling, just asking questions. It was kinda nice." Now it was Autumn's turn to laugh. "What?"

"He only yells for big events these days." Thunder nodded. "When he hung up did he say 'I'll talk to you later' or 'we'll talk later'?" Thunder thought for a moment, he didn't see why it mattered.

"He said 'we'll talk later'." Autumn laughed.

"Have fun in your room for a few days."

"What?" She shrugged.

"That's Mark code for you're grounded and you're getting a lecture. Had he said 'I'll talk to you later' that would have simply meant 'I can't believe you did that, but it was funny so I won't say anything'." Thunder nodded and Autumn went back to the TV. They weren't best friends, but at least they were talking.

Once again shoutouts to Mattagot for 1st reviews!

But of course RKOenigma and Cena's Baby doll get some love too!

Thanks guys let me know!


	33. Chapter 33

Disclaimer: I DON'T own any WWE wrestlers; this is all from the mind of a brilliant scientist.

Thunder was oddly nervous as they walked down the hallway of Amway Arena. Autumn and John were bantering in front of him while he just slowly followed. There was so much going through his mind, he was going to meet his little brother for the first time today. He had a little brother who he'd never met and he was going to meet him in a few minutes. Wow. His head was spinning. What if he didn't like him? He zoned out in the midst of his nervousness and walked into someone. It was a woman with long blonde hair and wearing a camouflage hat holding a little red headed girl's hand.

"Oh, excuse me I'm so sorry." Thunder shook his head, of course he'd run smack into someone. The woman gave him a polite smile she didn't seem hurt.

"It's quite alright, young man." She noticed Thunder's pale complexion. "Are you ok, you seem a bit pale?" Thunder smiled at her and nodded.

"Oh yeah, I'm fine. I'm sorry again."

"No its ok. We're fine." Thunder nodded.

"Um well it was nice to meet you." Thunder said as he awkwardly stepped around her and followed John and Autumn into the dressing room. All he cared about was getting to know his little brother.

Autumn walked into the room and sat down with her journal. She began staring at the plain sheets. She couldn't believe she was on the last page. Who knew finishing a journal would be so emotional? She stole a glance at Thunder. So much of her journal should have been filled with him, but it wasn't. He'd made her tuck him into a box in her mind and pretend he hadn't existed for so long. Now he was out in the open. She shook her head, sometimes she still felt like it was all a dream. Sighing, she realized he was as much a part of the problem as he was the solution. She gulped and started to write.

_Things aren't going as well as I hoped. I thought bringing Thunder back would help me with my feelings so I could finally get over these nightmares, but it didn't. In fact I think it made them worse. Well it did help at first but then last night I had a really bad nightmare. It was terrible. John was in this one again. I don't know why he keeps coming up in my dreams but I want it to stop. It's to the point where I can't look him in the eye. He's noticing me changing around him and he keeps asking but how can you tell someone that? You can't! Grr. _

_Anyway, it's so hard to live a life trying to learn how to love when you've got all these men around you confusing you. I know they mean well, but they all have different ways of expressing their love. I guess that's just a part of life. Goody._

_You know what's really bothering me? It's so painful to have my brother, my idol, to not talk to me because of a decision I made two years ago. Would I make the same decision now? Probably not, but I can't go back in time. I would if I could, but I can't. I CAN'T! If you think about it, Mark made the decision it was his call. Did I help? Well yeah but Thunder isn't blaming him, he's blaming me. I just want to scream at him sometimes. Why is he punishing me for the past? I know I'm probably overreacting it's just I'm so sad that he doesn't care that he's hurting me. He has to know this hurts me. He's always been so good and knowing what I'm feeling. That why he was such a good brother, he knew how to stop the hurt the instant in started. Sigh, I just want him to be that way again. I want us to be that way again. I miss him, I miss it, I miss his hugs. Ugh! It makes me so angry. He's supposed to be protecting me, but all I feel is pain he's supposed to protect me from… and he's the one causing it. I just want to scream! I tried to tell him my side when it happened, but he didn't want to hear it. As far as he's concerned I'm a traitor. I gave up our Mama's name and I left by baby brother alone. He said he didn't have a sister anymore. When he first said it I saw the fire in his eyes then I saw the pain. I know he's still grieving for Mama and processing information, but I'm grieving too. He acts like I'm not. Like I woke up one day and decided it all didn't happen. Well it did happen and I'm paying for it __every single day__. He doesn't even care that I cried myself to sleep that night and the night after. I just can't deal with him being so close and not wanting me around. My worst nightmare has come true. Maybe if… _

She stopped writing as she heard the door open. Shawn and Rebecca walked in with the kids. Autumn smiled at her little brother. He'd gotten so big. He was wearing a pair of camouflage shorts with an old Nascar shirt with the sleeves cut off. His curly hair was now a buzz cut that showed off his elfish ears. He smiled upon seeing his sister. They had made sure in the last year or so that Autumn and Trian spent at least two weeks together a year. Even though it was usually broken up in weekends here or there it still worked. She smiled and stood up walking over towards them. Shawn smiled.

"Well hello there. You've gotten to be quite beautiful little girl." Autumn smiled and gave him a hug.

"Thanks Uncle Shawn." She gave Rebecca a hug as well along with the other kids. Shawn looked around the room and smiled. Thunder was now standing awkwardly with his fists jammed into his pockets staring at the clock just above the television. Shawn moved past Autumn and walked towards Thunder. He stuck out his hands toward the young man.

"Hi, I'm Shawn and you must be Thunder." Thunder looked the man in his eyes and nodded. It was funny because they were about the same height. Autumn shook her head and turned back to her younger brother.

"Yes, that's me." Shawn noted the boy's clear nervousness and whispered in his ear.

"It's going to be fine. He's pumped to meet you." Shawn pulled away and Thunder smiled. "Alright, it's time to get these little ones out to the show. Trian be a good boy." Trian looked up at Shawn and nodded.

"Yes Daddy." Shawn threw Autumn and Thunder a smile and exited with the rest of his family. Trian immediately grabbed Autumn's hand and pulled her into a hug. Autumn smiled at him and returned it.

"Hey buddy? How are things?" Trian shrugged.

"They're great!" He threw a Tiger Woods fist pump and jumped in the air to emphasize his point. "Me and Daddy go huntin' a lot and Mama says I'm did really good in school." Thunder smiled even though his heart lurched inside his chest. Mama? Had he really forgotten his mother that quickly? He shook it off. He wasn't there to stop it. He'd just have to deal with it. He took a deep breath, he didn't want to screw this up.

Trian was practically bouncing off the walls with excitement. Autumn just smiled. Regardless of what Thunder said, she thought Trian was better off. He had siblings his own age and he got to have two parents. She glanced at Thunder who hadn't moved from his spot. Autumn shook her head, of course he needed to be introduced. She motioned for Trian to look at Thunder.

"Trian this is Thunder our older brother. Thunder this is Trian." Thunder looked at the little boy who was staring at him intently. He felt the hair on his neck stand up straight with tension and his hands go sweaty. Why was he this nervous? Trian broke into a smile and flung himself at Thunder, catching him off guard. Thunder smiled and caught his brother mid-air and settled him on his hip.

"Mama always said she had another son, but I thought she was joking." Thunder felt a tear in his eye. He'd thought she'd forgotten about them. "Hi, I'm Trian Colt Hickenbottom." Thunder couldn't help but to laugh.

"Oh?" Trian scowled.

"You better not be laughing at my last name." Thunder glanced at Autumn who was shaking her head violently. Thunder did the same.

"No, no I'm not. I was laughing at why you told me your whole name." Trian nodded.

"Good, cause I'm proud of my name." Thunder rolled his eyes, yeah sure you are kid. Trian spoke, "I said my name 'cause Mama said she gave us all nature names. What's yours?" Thunder looked at Autumn who was smiling.

"Well I'm Thunder Cloud Lewis and that weird looking girl over there is Autumn Sky, but ssh only we know that." Trian nodded and gave a thumbs up.

"I can keep a secret." Thunder smiled, he liked this kid.

The siblings spent the rest of the night talking and enjoying each other's company. They were all over the moon to have each other in the same room for the first time. They had gone to catering and gotten all kinds of sweets and were munching on them happily as they learned about each other. The stupid game was Autumn's idea but it benefitted them all. Their pleasure was stopped abruptly by a knock at the door. Thunder answered it revealing Shawn.

"Hey guys did you have a good time?" They all nodded. Trian smiled. Shawn looked down at his son. "Alright buddy, you ready to go?" Trian chewed his lip and looked at the floor.

"No sir. Not really, I'm having fun." Shawn's heart broke for them. They didn't get nearly as much time together as they needed, but they did have a flight to catch. He knelt down. "I know you are Buddy, but we have to get back home." Trian nodded and looked at the floor. "How about this? I see if you can go and spend a week or so at Uncle Mark's house in a few weeks so you can hang with your big brother and sister?" Trian's head shot up and he smiled.

"Yay!" Shawn nodded and stood up.

"I thought so." He glanced at his watch. "Alright, say goodbye we've gotta meet up with Mama." Trian turned around and gave Autumn a hug.

"I love you." Autumn smiled.

"I love you too Colt." Then Trian walked over to Thunder and stuck out his hand for a high five. Thunder went to slap it as Trian violently wrenched it away.

"Too slow!" They all started laughing. Thunder reached down and picked Trian up.

"Bye little man." Trian's face scrunched, he hated that name.

"Bye overgrown lizard." Thunder started laughing.

"Ok, I'll get you for that one later." He kissed Trian on the head and put him down. Trian turned and ran into Shawn's arms before he laid his head on his father's shoulder. Shawn turned to leave.

"I'll call your dad with details. Have a safe trip." They said goodbye and Shawn left with Trian waving over his shoulder. Autumn turned to her brother and walked back towards her journal. Thunder grabbed her arm. They shared an awkward silence. Thunder took a deep breath.

"I'm sorry." Autumn raised her eyebrow.

"For?" Thunder let a growl emerge from his throat. She couldn't always have been this difficult to deal with?

"For being a jerk. I shouldn't have jumped down your throat. I'm sorry." Autumn licked her lips, hmm. She could make it harder for him or she could stop it and accept his apology? She chose the immature route.

"Why?" Thunder looked at his sister and shook his head. He was pissed. Brat. He turned around and walked out into the hallway. He punched the buttons on his touchscreen phone and waited.

"Hello?"

"Mark did you book my flight?" Mark sighed, he couldn't believe that these kids hadn't worked it out yet. He thought for sure that after hanging out with their younger brother that they would have looked past their issues. Apparently he had been wrong. He rolled his eyes, they were too stubborn to see the pain they were causing each other.

"So how did it go with Trian?" Thunder frowned.

"It went fine. Did you book my flight?" Mark sighed, he hadn't actually booked the flight, he assumed they would have made up by now. Thunder wasn't stupid, he knew what Mark's long pause meant. "You didn't did you?"

"No son, I didn't." Thunder was pissed.

"I'm not your son," he spat and hit the end button. Thunder rubbed his hand over his face. It seemed like he just couldn't win.

XXX

Thunder laid under his car adding in some much needed torque to his engine. He couldn't wait to hit the streets with this thing. He was going to turn some heads for sure. That is when he was allowed to leave the house again. Autumn was right, Mark had grounded him upon his first step inside the house. Not like it was a bad thing. He still hadn't made friends yet so it wasn't like he was really missing out on anything. Oh well he'd just use the free time to clear his mind. Although being stuck in the house for two days did have one major advantage, he could work on his one true love: his car. Thunder sighed as he heard the front door open. Of course Mark couldn't leave him alone for very long.

"How's it going?" Thunder slid himself out from under the car and looked up at Mark. He shrugged.

"Not much, just adding some improvements." He wouldn't tell him that his 'improvements' were some much needed racing gear. He was going to hit the streets in style and ready to win.

Mark nodded and pulled a chair next to the car. "I brought you something to drink." Thunder smiled happily and happily accepted it. The Houston sun was no joke. Mark looked at Thunder his features looked tired and drained. He sighed, he'd have to help them reconcile eventually or make them reconcile. One or the other depending on his patience. I'm getting too old for this, he thought to himself. Thunder decided to sit down next to Mark sensing he wanted to talk. He might as well let him or end up making him angry.

"I'm liking your improvements. That exhaust looks amazing." Thunder nodded taking a sip of the soda.

"Thanks." Thunder paused for a moment. "Um, I really appreciate you giving me the money so I could fix her up and well buy her." Mark nodded.

"No thanks necessary, just consider this an act of good faith. I know you won't let me down." Thunder nodded but didn't say anything. Mark sensed this was a good time to make a point made. "I want you to know I trust you." Thunder looked at Mark slightly intrigued. "I do." He took a deep breath. "You're my daughter's brother. She's a good judge of character. She trusts you, I trust you." Thunder nodded. Mark reached into his pocket and pulled out a set of keys. He handed them to Thunder "As long as you want to stay here you've got a home." Thunder didn't know how to respond to that. It was sadly one of the most touching sentiments he'd ever been given. No one had ever trusted him with house keys before. He was overcome with emotion. Thunder tried shake it off. He set the soda on the ground and stood up. He popped the hood and started messing with stuff. Anything to get out of this awkward situation. _Anything._ Mark sighed and set his own drink down. He teetered towards Thunder. "Need a hand?" Thunder smiled softly. All his life, he wanted a father who'd work on cars with him. Funny how he found one when he didn't need one.

XXX

Autumn sighed and flipped through the magazine. She was on Randy's bus heading out of St. Louis towards the next venue. She was due home Sunday night. She was loving life on Randy's bus. He had three different video game consoles and a fully stocked fridge. Plus she had her own bunk with a pull down DVD player. She smiled as she looked up from her magazine and out at the ever passing trees under the night stars. It was all so pretty in a flash. She giggled to herself…she'd name her kid flash. Flash Calaway. She shook her head smiling to herself. Silly goose she was. Living life on this bus was dope. She'd have to see if she could spend whole week with Randy sometime soon. This was just too much fun. Randy rubbed his head and yawned. He walked past her and then plopped down next to her.

"Hey baby." Autumn shook her head, of she'd always be his baby.

"What's up?" Randy shrugged.

"Not much kiddo. Just got off the phone with the girlfriend and the kid." Autumn smiled. She hoped he would have a good life with a nice woman. Although she was moderately jealous of the kid who got Randy's full attention.

"So how's the kid?" Randy smiled, he sensed a twinge of jealousy.

"She's fine. You wanna know something?"

"What?"

"You're special."

"Oh?" He nodded.

"Yup, cause you're my favorite." Autumn rolled her eyes, but it worked she didn't feel so bad. There was a pause. Randy watched Autumn's shoulders slump and noticed she looked like she hadn't slept well. "You ok?" She looked up at him. She nodded her head and scrunched her eyebrows in an effort to put on a show.

"Oh yeah, for sure." She started to outline the lines in her palms with her fingers in an attempt to avoid his eyes. "Why you ask?" she said shakily.

"I don't know you seem like you've got something on your mind." Autumn groaned inwardly, for someone so dense he always seemed to know when something was really bothering her. "Come on, what is it?" Autumn pulled her knees to her chest.

"Um, if I tell you will you promise not to tell someone else?" Randy moved his head around contemplating the idea.

"Unless it will cause harm to you or you're hurting yourself I won't tell a soul." Autumn nodded, that sounded like a pretty air tight deal. She took a deep breath.

"I've been having dreams." Randy nodded his head casually.

"And?" She pulled her legs closer to her chest.

"Well nightmares really." Randy nodded. "They're about John." Randy was holding his breath. "Um, he's helping my step father beat me and they won't go away." Randy looked at her and she looked at the floor. He wrapped his arm around her and pulled her close to his chest. He rubbed his hand up and down her arm soothingly.

"Baby, I'm so sorry." Randy kissed the top of her head. "Do you know why they're happening?" Autumn shook her head sadly.

"No, but I wish I could stop them." Randy nodded.

"Um, have you talked to your therapist about this?" She shook her head.

"I haven't been home to go see her. I guess when I get back I'll tell my dad to set up the bi-weekly appointments again." She closed her eyes tightly. Ugh. It seemed like every time she moved forward she got thrown drastically backwards. Up until recently she'd been down to one visit per month. Ugh, she was regressing. Randy shook his head, she didn't deserve this kind of stuff to be happening to her. He sighed and thought for a moment.

"Do you know when he started appearing in dreams?" Autumn thought for a moment.

"The night before he dropped me off at the airport to see Thunder." Randy nodded.

"Was that around the time he punished you for stealing the belts?" Autumn started thinking hard.

"Yeah, yeah it is." Randy nodded.

"Maybe you're mad at him for punishing you." Autumn sighed, maybe. All she knew was that she wanted these stupid dreams to be over. He looked deep into her eyes, they were full of turmoil. Man, he just wanted to hold her and make all her pain go away. Sighing he sat back. He pulled her closer to his chest. Soon they both fell asleep.

XXX

Thunder rolled over and glared at his grumbling alarm clock. He was going to murder Mark. What kind of person made their kid get up at 530 to clean gym equipment? Ugh. Thunder hit the snooze button. Just five more minutes.

An hour later Thunder woke up to ice water in his face. He sat straight up. The water seeped into his bare chest. Man that was cold! He mumbled angrily to himself and glared up at Mark through his still wet eyes.

"You've got five minutes to get up and out the door. If you're late it's coming out of your check." With that Mark turned and left. Thunder lay back and groaned…what had he gotten himself into? "If you're late twice I'm taking your car privileges away!" Thunder groaned and flew out of the bed. He couldn't afford to lose his car privileges that thing was his life. Moving at break neck speed he changed into a pair of cargo shorts and his Calaway Fitness Solutions shirt while brushing his teeth, then flew downstairs. He couldn't find his keys…great! He shuffled around and then saw Mark standing near the door holding a pair of keys and a bagel. Thunder smiled inwardly while outwardly he kept his scowl on.

He mumbled a thanks as he headed out to the car. This was so unfair. Thunder was sure Mark was treating him worse cause he wasn't actually his kid. He was sure of it. He hopped into his car and backed out of the driveway. Thunder couldn't believe this. First he had to get a job, then he was late, plus he was under strict instructions to refer to Mark as 'Mr. Calaway'. Was he serious? Thunder was so upset. So much for Mark being a fair guy. Clearly he was favoring Autumn. He was sure Mark would never make her do any of this. He grunted. He fumed all the way to the gym. Thunder parked his car and ran into the gym. It was five minutes to seven. He entered the gym and found a person sitting behind the counter. He pulled out a piece of paper out of his pocket.

"Um, excuse me but I'm looking for Patrick Ingram." The lady behind the desk smiled.

"I think you mean Patricia Ingram and she's right over there." Thunder nodded.

"Thank you." Thunder sauntered over towards the office and knocked.

"Come in." A lady in a business suite glanced up at him and looked back down at her notes. "You're four minutes late." Thunder grunted, no he wasn't. He rubbed the back of the neck.

"I'm uh sorry but not by my watch." She looked up with a raised eyebrow.

"Oh?" Thunder nodded.

"Yeah, my watch say its 6: 58." She nodded and put her head back down.

"Duly noted. However it is now 7:05. I suggest if you want to keep this job, you set your clock according to ours and well you know the rest of the world's." She looked up from the stack of papers. "But just in case you decide not to, if this happens again it's coming out of your pay." Who was this lady? Mark's twin sister? "Well get started, there's a bucket in the janitors closet and Leslie at the front desk will show you your tasks. I expect you will do them all thoroughly with not cut corners." Thunder nodded and backed out of the door.

"Ok." Ms. Ingram looked up at him pointedly.

"You do not answer me 'ok' its yes ma'am or no ma'am. Understood?" Thunder nodded.

"Yes ma'am."

He grunted and walked out of the room shaking his head. Great, he had Mark the house and this chick here. Just great.

Five hours later, Thunder lay back on the patch of grass just beside the gym. His lunch was a pack of chips from the vending machine and a soda. He'd woofed that down in thirty seconds. Who knew a car could 'cause him so much grief? Someone kicked his foot. "Mind if I join you?" Thunder opened his eyes and saw girl with short brown hair with green streaks. Thunder nodded and sat up.

"I'm Thunder." She nodded.

"I'm Colby." He smiled softly at her. She pulled out two sandwiches out of a brown paper bag along with some chips and some juice. His mouth began to water, and his stomach growled. Colby laughed. Thunder felt his ears burning. She smiled. "Hey would you like one?" Thunder smiled, what else could he do? Before he could answer she handed it to him.

"Thanks."

"You're welcome," she said taking a bite out of her other one. They ate in silence for a while. "So why are you here?" Thunder shrugged.

"Cause I need a car." She smiled.

"Don't we all?"

"Yeah, I guess you're right."

"What model?"

"02 Honda Civic Cherry red." Thunder smiled as the words rolled off his tongue.

"Sweet. It's probably all tricked out right?"

"Oh yeah."

"Sick. I drive a Honda Accord." Thunder couldn't help but to smile.

"A chick who knows cars?" Colby raised her eyebrow.

"Oh yeah." They talked for a while pretty much all of their half an hour lunch break. Thunder was happy it seemed he finally made a friend here in Houston. He heard a familiar truck pull up and Mark get out. Of course he walked over towards them. He peered down at them and smiled.

"Colby, Thunder." Thunder rolled his eyes while Colby beamed.

"Mr. Calaway."

"Hi Mark." Mark tensed his jaw muscles, they'd talked about this. He decided to let it go for now. Mark glanced at his watch.

"Bout time for you guys to head back in, right?" Colby nodded.

"Yes sir, we were just finishing up." Mark nodded.

"Alright, see you inside." He turned and left. Colby turned to Thunder and whacked his arm.

"Have you lost your mind? Mr. Calaway has fired summer workers for calling him Mark." Thunder just shrugged. "Seriously though, his own daughter can't call him Mark at work. It's dad or Mr. Calaway like everybody else." Thunder shrugged but found that interesting. She had to call keep it professional too.

"I live with him." Colby gasped. "Well I live with my sister. Uh well he's my sister's dad. I'm staying with them."

"Oh my gosh, you're his son?" Thunder shook his head sipping the water.

"No, I'm not. I'm his daughter's brother." Colby shook her head.

"Wait you're Autumn's brother? I thought Trian was a little kid." Thunder looked at her, how'd she know that much about her life?

"No, I'm her older brother Thunder. Trian is our little brother." Colby nodded making an 'o' shape with her mouth. "So how do you know so much about my sister?"

"She works here sometimes after school. It's usually a punishment, but sometimes if she wants something expensive she has to work here to pay for it." Thunder was shocked, so he wasn't getting special treatment? Hmm, maybe he'd misjudged Mark. He felt sort of bad for jumping to conclusions. Thunder grunted inwardly. Why did it matter anyway? He wasn't Mark's kid. "Wait hold on, I'm confused though, Mr. Calaway said the other new worker was his son, but you said you weren't. Is he adopting you too?" That caught Thunder off guard. He really didn't know if Mark would adopt him or if he'd want him to. After all he'd be eighteen in a few months and wouldn't be eligible for state help not like Mark needed it anyway, but it was still an added bonus. Besides he had Autumn that's all he needed. Sighing, he still had to admit that having Mark refer to him as his son, made him very happy.

"I um don't know. I guess I've never thought about it." She nodded and stood up.

"Well I guess we better get back inside." Thunder nodded and stood up next to her, grabbing the trash out of her hand. "Ooh a gentlemen I like that." Thunder smiled. He walked toward the trash bin and placed the trash inside. He turned to Colby.

"Did he really call me his son?" Colby smiled at him and nodded.

"Yep." Thunder sighed, he owed someone an apology. Thunder walked inside and glanced around for Mark. He couldn't find him. He shrugged and went to the task of cleaning the floors of the workout studios. There were about ten rooms between all three floors and each one had to be cleaned twice a day. Yuck. He sighed and got to the task, grumbling wasn't going to help.

At five o'clock Thunder walked over to the time slot and clocked out. His arms were burning and his back was aching. He was going to take a long shower when he got back to the house. He walked toward Mark's office but saw that he wasn't in there. He shrugged, oh well he'd talk to him when he got home. Thunder couldn't believe this, he hadn't seen Mark since lunch. What kind of boss was he? Oh well, he saw Colby standing by the door smiling at him. He walked over towards her.

"So what are you doing tonight?" Thunder smiled smugly.

"Are you asking me out?" Colby rolled her eyes.

"Not in your best dream." Thunder grabbed his heart and held it like he was in pain.

"My heart!" he said with overzealous exasperation. Colby giggled.

"There's some street races downtown on the boulevard on Thursday nights around eleven. If you get can get out of the house, you should come." Thunder smiled mischievously at her_. If he could get out of the house? _

"I think I can, how long does it last?" She shrugged.

"We can have up to four or five different races depends on the cops really." Thunder nodded. "You can roll with me, so your dad doesn't get pissed." Thunder nodded, sounded like a good deal.

"Alright." He smiled cockily. "So you're going to pick _me _up?" Again she rolled her eyes.

"Yep. I even might let you drive, "she paused, "but only if you're nice." Thunder smiled, he liked this chick.

"Alright pick me up at 9."

"Why nine?"

"Because if I say I'm leaving at ten, he'll never let me go." She nodded.

"Ok, makes sense. I'll pick you up." Thunder smiled as she turned and headed outside.

"I'll walk you out." She shook her head.

"No, I think someone wants to talk to you," she said pointing behind Thunder. He turned around to see Mark walking towards him. Colby opened the door. "Have fun." Thunder turned toward Mark and gave a small smile when Mark got close enough, he saw the look on Mark's face it was one not to mess with.

"Come on, I'll walk you to your car." Thunder raised his eyebrow and nodded. He followed Mark the short distance to his car in the parking lot. Once away from everyone else, Mark spoke again. "Listen here, I gave you this job for two reasons. One so we can get to know each other better and two so you can learn the value of hard work and set a good example for your sister. But I promise you this, if you ever disrespect me like that again, you won't so much step out of the house again let alone have a car. Is that understood?" Thunder usually would get defensive, but he knew he was in the wrong. He nodded.

"Yes sir." Mark looked around and then at Thunder. Was this the same kid? Mark tried to play it off, he knew the kid would show him some respect. After all he is Mark 'the Undertaker' Calaway. Mark watched Thunder look uneasy and then he thought for a moment.

"Would you like to go to dinner?" Thunder looked surprised.

"Um…" Mark rolled his eyes, teenagers.

"You know, a guy's night out. Autumn will be back in three days. It won't be long before we're overrun with estrogen." Thunder thought for a moment. "Come on, you know you want to. It's free." Thunder shook his head. Mark was trying, he was really _trying_.

"Alright." Mark raised his eyebrow and smiled.

"Alright?" Thunder nodded.

"Yeah, alright. As long as we're back by nine." Mark cocked his head a bit.

"Got a date?" Thunder shook his head.

"No, just hanging out with a friend."

"Would that friend's name be Colby?" Thunder rolled his eyes. "I knew it. I saw how she was looking at you." Thunder felt this slight emotion in his belly. It was something he hadn't really felt before. It wasn't anger or irritation…it was embarrassment. Great, Mark had stepped into the embarrassing father role. Ugh. Great.

X

Mark stared at the waitress as she took their order. She smiled at him. "Mr. Calaway what brings you back here? I thought you left for a while." He shook his head.

"Naw, I just had to take care of my kids."

"Kids?" Mark nodded.

"Yeah my daughter Autumn and my son here Thunder." Thunder felt that twinge in his gut again.

"Aww, he's handsome just like his dad. Well I'm gonna let you boys talk and have a nice night." They nodded and she left.

"Wow, does everyone know you?" Mark rolled his eyes. So far they'd had about twenty people ask for autographs and now the waitress.

"No." Mark paused. "Would you like me not to sign them?" Thunder looked at him curiously.

"Why does that matter?" Mark shrugged.

"I let Autumn choose if I'm signing autographs or not. I want her to know she's my priority, not them. Same goes for you."

"But I'm not your kid." Mark raised his eyebrow and set down his drink.

"I beg your pardon?" Thunder shrugged.

"I'm not your kid. I'm just your daughters' brother. I mean don't you just say that to stop people from asking questions?" Mark's heart broke for the kid. He didn't know love when he saw it. Mark looked into Thunder's eyes.

"Whether you want to believe it or not, you are my kid." Thunder opened his mouth but Mark put his hand up silencing him. "Now, let me finish. You're my kid, not by blood but by choice. You're not just my daughter's brother, you're my child, you're my responsibility, you're my son." Thunder looked at the bubbles in his Sprite. "Like it or not kid, you're stuck with me." Thunder didn't respond and just sat there.

They ate in virtual silence. Thunder was still reeling over Mark's speech and Mark was enjoying watching him squirm. A small little boy walked over to the table with a piece of paper. He had big blue eyes and could barely see over the table.

"Um, 'cuse me can I have your auddergraph?" Mark chuckled at the cute little boy. Then glanced at Thunder. Thunder nodded as Mark took the paper from the kid.

"Hey buddy, what's your name?"

"Steven." His squeaky little voice was too much Thunder couldn't help but break his cold façade and chuckle.

"Well Steven, here ya go buddy." The little boy smiled. He looked at Thunder.

"Is the Undertaker your daddy?" Thunder chewed his lip and played with his straw. After a brief pause he spoke.

"Yeah, yeah he is."

Alrighty guys, that was an extra-long one. Lemme know.

Shoutouts to Cena's Baby Doll and Mattagot for the reviews.


	34. Chapter 34

**Disclaimer: I DON'T own any WWE wrestlers; this is all from the mind of a brilliant scientist.**

**Although, Damian is a brain child of Mattagot whom I dig. :D Thanks!**

_Three Months later_

Mark shook his head as he watched Thunder and Autumn argue over if a tomato was a fruit or a vegetable. They'd been arguing for the last fifteen minutes. Mark thought his head would explode. He grunted, he'd about had enough of their useless bickering. Ever since the summer they'd been arguing over stupid topics for no reason. Whether it was the fastest route to school or who was the better actor. He sighed, man this was irritating. He loved these two kids and they were slowly solidifying their bond by driving him insane! He slammed his fist on the table jolting them out of their argument.

"Knock it off," he growled. "You two have been arguing nonstop. Kill the noise and enjoy each other's company." Autumn and Thunder glanced at each other then broke into laughter.

"We're sorry. Are we making you irritable in your old age?"

"Yeah, do you need a nap?" Mark's eyes narrowed at his laughing kids. He smiled at least they weren't arguing.

"Alright, Pen and Teller, go start on your homework. I've got some phone calls to make." Thunder smiled.

"Fine with me, its Sky's night to do the dishes anyway." Autumn shot him a look.

"Jerk."

"Brat."

"Knock it off!" Both kids glared at each other as they went their separate ways. Mark smiled as he headed off into his office.

The doorbell rang just as Autumn was preparing the dish water. "T, can you get that?"

"Nope." Autumn chewed her lip and walked out of the kitchen. She glared at her brother who was walking up the stairs.

"Jerk," she muttered under her breath. Sighing she opened the door revealing a young man who was almost as tall as Mark. Whoa. She stared up at him in awe. He had jet black hair and tattoos all over him. He was scary. Her mouth was stuck in a permanent 'o' shape. Thunder shook his head, what was taking her so long? He walked back down the stairs and came up behind her. Then he saw him, it was a younger version of Mark except with softer features. Immediately he felt jealousy devour his body. He shook his head filled with venom and gently grabbed his sister by her shoulders pulling her back into the house and stepped in front of her protectively.

"Um, can I help you," he said making his voice deeper. The young man nodded slowly.

"Yes, um I looking for Mark Calaway, do you know where he is?" Thunder raised his eyebrow. He was instantly irritated by this character.

"Why?" The young man stepped into Thunder's space to try and intimidate him. He peered down at him behind his sunglasses.

"That's none of your concern." Thunder scoffed. Autumn was still staring up at the man in awe of his size.

"Well then good night." He tried to close the door but the man overpowered him and held it open. Thunder sighed. Autumn finally returned to life and looked up at her older brother.

"Should I go get Dad?"

"No."

"Yes." The two said simultaneously. The battle of wills had begun. Autumn ignored them both and darted towards Mark's office. A staring contest ensued between the two young men. Thunder standing at 6'2 wasn't as nearly intimidated by the man's 6'9 frame as his younger sister who stood just under 5'7. Thunder refused to back down, not even to a blood relative of Mark's. This was his domain. No one was gonna waltz in here and take what was his. _No one._

Mark grunted as he came into the foyer. He wasn't in the mood. Finally he made it to the door with Autumn hot on his tail. He slid Thunder to the side.

"Mark Calaway." The young man peered behind his sunglasses off and stared into the man's eyes. This was it, this was why he came. The young man was lost in his thoughts, he'd dreamed about his moment for his whole life. Mark grunted, he was going to freak out if this was some fan. "Look if you're some fan…" The young man snapped out of his trance. Immediately his heart started beating rapidly.

"Nice to meet you." Mark rolled his eyes.

"Well it's nice to meet you too. Good night." Mark pulled Thunder into the house and went to close the door. Again the man put his hand on the door.

"No!" Mark sighed.

"Well talk then," he growled in irritation.

"Um well, it's hard to say this." Thunder who was standing behind Mark with his arms crossed over his now muscular chest laughed.

"It's not that hard to talk spaz," he spat. Mark rolled his eyes while the young man glared at him.

"Look, you little demon shut your mouth before I shut it for you." Mark wouldn't have that. He stepped toward the young man and looked deep into his sunglasses.

"Don't you dare threaten my son! Now, get out of here, before I call the cops." That was when the young man took his sunglasses off.

"I am your son." Mark's jaw tightened in anger. He deepened his glare at the young man. He looked deep into the boy's eyes, and his life flashed in rewind. He saw the passion and joy, the restless zeal that consumed his life for six months. He saw….Lydia. His first real love.

Mark took a step back and felt the ground waver under him. Thunder was at his side in a flash and held him up. Mark quickly righted himself, but Autumn and Thunder were still shaken up.

"You ok?" Mark nodded a deep breath. He stood back up and placed his hand on Thunder's shoulder.

"Yeah I'm fine." Thunder nodded and took a step back. He deepened his glare at the young man who'd now revealed himself to be Mark's son. Mark noticed the tension between the two and stepped in.

"You two go back inside and hit the books. I'll come up later for goodnight." Thunder shook his head but said nothing. Autumn's eyes were glassy. She'd never seen Mark falter like that.

"No, Daddy." Mark's heart melted and he smiled at her. She just seemed to capture his heart every single day. He grabbed her arm pulled her close to his chest. He kissed her hair. Autumn looked up as Mark placed his big hands on the side of her face.

"Daddy's alright, ok?"

"You sure?" He nodded. She took a deep breath and turned and went into the house. Thunder however stood firmly planted. Mark shook his head, the boy was as stubborn as a mule. Before Mark could tell him to go inside Thunder spoke.

"I'm not going inside." Mark rolled his eyes.

"Yeah you are, now." Thunder narrowed his eyes and glared at the young man again, but still didn't move. "I meant it Thunder."

"Dad I…" Mark shot him a look that left no room for argument. Thunder shook his head and walked away leaving Mark and the young man behind.

"Let's go inside." They walked past the kitchen and into Mark's office. It was the only room in the house that was off limits to the kids. Mark sat in his big desk while the young man sat on the opposite side. As Mark shuffled papers the young man was astonished by the size of this room. His and his mom's apartment could fit inside of here. Wow, this was how the other half lived. Mark's heart was pounding in his chest, he had no time to waste.

"What's your mother's name?"

"Lydia Chapman." Mark sighed, that was right.

"How old is she?" The young man rolled his eyes.

"Forty six." He said it like a weight was on his tongue. Mark noticed.

"What's wrong?" the young man shrugged.

"I don't want to talk about it." Mark's eyebrow raised.

"You don't want to talk about it? You come here telling me you're my son and you don't want to talk about your mother. Why not? I mean unless you're lying." Mark knew he wasn't. The kid was the perfect cross between him and Lydia. Clearly this was his son, besides how many other men could make a 6'9 kid? But he didn't need to tell him that, of course. He wanted to watch the young man squirm.

"Yeah, excuse me if I don't want to talk about my dead mother!" Mark blinked more times in the next fifteen seconds than he had in his whole life. "Look, if you don't believe me I'll just leave. I don't need this," he said standing up. Mark shook his head.

"No, sit." The young man looked at him. Mark grunted why were all these kids so difficult? "I said _sit." _The young man looked at Mark.

"I'm not one of you kids who takes orders. I'm a grown man." Mark took a deep breath and chewed the inside of his jaw.

"Fine, please sit down," he said through gritted teeth. The young man smiled.

"It'd be my pleasure." Mark took a deep breath. This kid had a mouth on him.

"What's your name?"

"Lizard." Mark spat out his coffee.

"Lizard? Please tell me that's not your real name." Lizard's eyes rolled. Who'd actually name their kid 'Lizard'?

"No, it's not it's Damian Marcus." Mark nodded and raised an eyebrow. "I like reptiles. Lizards especially, thus Lizard." Mark nodded in understanding.

The two spent the next two hours talking. The moments wavered between tense and awkward. Neither of them knew exactly what to say to each other. Some subjects were sore while others were completely off limits. Mark stood up as he glanced at his watch. "I've got to tell my kids." Mark shook his head. He was sure both of them were going to flip out. Mark walked out of the room and Lizard was right behind him in his own world. After life as an only child, he was finally going to have siblings. He just hoped they liked him. It'd be nice to play big brother for once. Real nice.

"Autumn, Thunder get down here." Lizard laughed as he heard footsteps thundering down the hall. They were obedient like lab rats. He was shocked though, it was only the girl. Where was the little demon boy? "Autumn where's your brother?" She shrugged.

"Prolly on the phone with Colby." Mark rolled his eyes.

"Ten seconds Thunder," Mark bellowed. About a minute and a half later Mr. Cool Breeze came sauntering down the steps just as Mark was going to head up to drag him downstairs by his ears. "Nice of you to join us." Thunder shrugged.

"I had stuff to do," he said glaring at Lizard.

"And that stuff just cost you your cell phone for the rest of the night." Thunder's mouth dropped.

"Seriously?" Mark just raised his eyebrows. Thunder shook his head and handed Mark his cell phone. "So unfair." Lizard gave a smirk, so his dad was the authoritative type. This would definitely be fun.

"Take a seat guys." They did as they were told. Mark sat in his usual seat while Lizard sat at the other head of the table. Thunder shook his head, who'd this guy think he was?

"Mark, what's the spaz doing here?" Mark rolled his eyes. Thunder was very much like Autumn in many ways. Just like in her first few months with him, Thunder wavered between Mark and Dad. She used it for comfort, Thunder uses it just out of preference of the moment. Mark cracked his knuckles.

"Alright here's how it's going to go down. I'm going to talk with no interruptions. You're going to sit there and listen then when I'm done you get to speak, understood?" Thunder shrugged while Autumn spoke.

"Yes sir."

"Good." Mark took a deep breath. "About twenty-five years ago, before I met Allie and had my boys I met a young girl at a night club. We partied and rode motorcycles together. We were hot and heavy for about six months." He smiled. "Six wonderful months, but then uh she went away to visit her grandmother in Oregon somewhere and I never saw her again." He sighed. "It fizzled almost as quickly as it began."

"Well that's all well and good but what does this have to do with us?" Autumn's eyes almost bugged out of her head. Now she was sure her brother was a certified nut job. Mark was going to kill him!

"Thunder!" Mark shook his head.

"If you shut up, I'll tell you." Thunder shrugged and sat back in his seat. Mark rolled his eyes. They were going to talk about his attitude. "Anyway, it has come to my attention that the reason she left was that she was pregnant. The spaz is my son." The room got an awkward and tense vibe. No one knew what to say. Mark glanced at his kids. Autumn was blank while Thunder was chewing the inside of his lip. "Well guys?" Still no one spoke. "Autumn?" She looked up at him.

"Well um this is a lot." Mark and Lizard laughed.

"Yeah it is." She smiled.

"If you're fine with it, then I guess I am too. The more the merrier right?" Mark smiled at her, she was beautiful inside and out.

"Yeah it is." She smiled and waved at Lizard.

"Hi, I'm Autumn." Lizard smiled at her.

"I'm Lizard, it's nice to meet you." She nodded.

"Same here." Lizard took a deep breath, maybe this wouldn't be as bad as he'd thought. "So um how many tattoos do you have?" Lizard smiled.

"Um probably about thirty. I want to get more done."

"Do they hurt?"

"Only a little bit."

"I hear they cost a lot." Lizard shook his head.

"Not when you own a tattoo parlor." Autumn's eyes started to glow.

"Really?"

"Yep, maybe I could show you around someday. That is if your dad's ok with that." Autumn looked at her father.

"Is it?" Mark shrugged.

"I don't see why not." He paused and his eyes got calloused. "But if you come home with a tattoo you won't live to see sixteen, understood?" Autumn nodded and giggled. Thunder still hadn't said anything. Mark knew he wasn't taking this well, he just hoped it wasn't as bad as he thought.

XXX

Breakfast the next morning was tense. Lizard had spent the night and Thunder hadn't liked it one bit. He hadn't spoken three words since he got up and stormed away from the table last night. Mark was worried, Thunder didn't think straight when he angry. He hoped that he wouldn't do anything stupid.

Thunder sighed as he moved his eggs around on his plate. Autumn and Lizard were happily enjoying each other's company. They were talking like they'd known each other for years. She even invited him to go camping with them, which sent Thunder into a fit of rage. The trip was supposed to be family only…the three of them. **NOT FOUR!** He grunted. He couldn't think straight. In one night, his perfect world was destroyed. No more dad, him, and little sister. No, now it was dad, _him¸_him and little sister. He didn't even know his role anymore. His whole life he'd been the protector, now he was just another tool in the shed. He grunted and stood up.

"I'm going to school," he said as he pushed away from the table. Autumn shook her head.

"T, it's your morning to do the dishes." Mark knew what was going on and quickly stepped in.

"No, its fine I'll do the dishes." Thunder sighed with relief, he wanted out of this room. "Autumn go grab your bag so you can leave with your brother." Autumn looked around trying to avoid Mark's eyes.

"I um, haven't packed it yet." Mark rolled his eyes. Lately she was having this bad habit of putting off homework until the next morning. He wasn't going to stand for this much longer.

"We've talked about this. Homework is done the night before, not the next morning."

"I know Daddy, but Lizard showed up and I just kinda forgot. Besides we still have a whole half hour to get to school. Thunder's just rushing 'cause he wants to see his girlfriend." Thunder shrugged, she wanted to be a brat fine.

"Fine, walk then." Mark stood up.

"Thunder." Thunder stopped walking and turned around. "You have to take her, I have an early meeting that I need to leave for." Thunder chewed his jaw.

"Why do I have to cater to her? My life is important too." His voice cracked with emotion. He was getting angrier by the second. His breathing became rapid as he tried to control his growing anger and frustration. Mark walked over to him and took a deep breath hoping Thunder would follow suite.

"Come on, take a deep breath, you're her older brother."

"Yeah and she's a brat." Thunder motioned towards Lizard. "And you know what, he's her older brother get him to drive her." Lizard's eyes narrowed, he really didn't like this kid.

"Yeah, I can take her Mark. It's fine." Mark looked at Lizard, he was only making things worse. Thunder nodded in confirmation.

"See, new big brother to the rescue. Now if you'll excuse me, my girlfriend is waiting." Thunder turned around and headed towards the door ignoring Mark's calls. Mark grunted, when he got home tonight he and Thunder would talk. There was no way his son was going to disrespect him like that.

Mark turned to Autumn and gave her a look. She shot up the stairs headed to do her homework. Lizard laughed at how trained Mark had these kids. He observed how stressed his father seemed to be. His breathing was deep and he was pinching the bridge of his nose.

"Um, Mark are you ok?" Mark's eyes opened and he nodded.

"Yeah, just a little tired." Lizard looked into his eyes and shook his head.

"No, no you're not. Something's wrong." Mark smiled, the kid was worried about him.

"No, I'm fine son really." Lizard looked at his father and shook his head, he wouldn't argue. "I um have to head out, can you make sure she finishes her work?" Lizard nodded.

"Yeah, I can do that. Um would you mind if I took her to my shop after school?" Mark smiled, who could say no to brother sister bonding?

"Yeah, that's fine. Just have her home by dinner." Lizard nodded. "Autumn, I'm leaving." A moment later they heard feet frantically running down the stairs. She ran and hugged Mark then turned on a dime and headed back upstairs to her room. "Make sure you lock the door and set the alarm."

"Yes sir." was all they heard before the door slammed yet again. Lizard and Mark laughed.

"Will you be here for dinner tonight?" Lizard smiled.

"Yeah, I think I am." Mark nodded and walked out the door leaving Lizard and Autumn to enjoy each other's company.

Thunder parked his car. He was still angry about Lizard. He was valuable to Mark because he was his only son, the second in command now he wasn't. This sucked tremendously. He heard a knock at his window. He smiled…Colby. She slunk her way into his car.

"Hey stranger." They kissed and pulled back. She noticed his away look in his eye. "Are you ok?"

"No. No I'm not."

"What's wrong?" Thunder sighed, he'd have to tell her eventually.

"My dad has another son. He showed up last night."

"Whoa."

"Whoa is right. He's older than me and Mark's blood. How can I compete with that?" Colby grabbed his hand. She was the one person the world that Thunder confided in. She knew his insecurities and how he had finally found security living with Mark and Autumn.

"Babe, you don't have to compete. I'm sure he still loves you just as much as he did before." She shrugged. "Now, there's just more of you in the family." Thunder shook his head angrily.

"That's just it, we barely see him as it is. Now it'll be down to 'good night son.' I'll never get to see him." Colby tried to reason with him, but it was clear Thunder was beyond help. She figured she'd just leave it alone.

"Don't forget, you're on tonight. Five hundred dollar buy in." Thunder nodded. He'd been waiting months to get into this race. No one was going to ruin it.

"Yeah I know."

"Let's head inside before the goon squad shows up." Thunder nodded. They interlocked their fingers as they headed into the building. Colby was talking, but Thunder wasn't listening, his mind was elsewhere.

X

Mark took a deep breath as he waited for his doctor to come back with his test results. To say he was nervous was an understatement. He knew something was wrong. He was sluggish, his thoughts were cloudy, he was having shortness of breath, not to mention almost fainting the other day. When he was younger those types of things would never have happened. He was only forty-five, he was still so young. He took a deep breath as the door opened. Mark's heart lurched in his chest as the doctor's face was sullen. He closed his eyes to hear the words everyone dreads in a hospital room.

"Mr. Calaway, I have bad news…"

**Alrighty guys there ya go…it's a pretty decent sized chappie. :D **

**Two…I want your feedback. These last few chapters I've gone out of my comfort zone and I want your input, the good, the bad, and the ugly. I just like to know how it's being received so I can improve. **

**Also check my profile for some polls. I want you guys to have some input in the story. :D**


	35. Chapter 35

_One Week Later_

Lizard was driving down the road to the high school. He was on his way to pick Autumn up from school. He'd gotten a call from Mark earlier asking to pick her up because Thunder was still in a mood. In fact he'd been moody all week. He was mouthy and disrespectful to Mark and short with Autumn. He ignored Lizard unless he was glaring at him. Lizard wanted with everything in his being to put that kid in his place. He watched as Mark got paler and hurt every time Thunder would do something to either him or Autumn. He wanted to help his father so he agreed, but he really wanted to punch that spoiled kid's lights out. He grunted to himself.

He'd never had siblings up until now, but he knew he'd never treat his little sister that way. Never. Sooner or later he'd have a big brother talk with that kid. He pulled up to the curb and spotted Autumn sitting there alone with her headphones on and writing in a notebook. He parked the car and walked over towards her. He was surprised that she didn't sit notice him walking towards her. He sat down next to her making her jump. Lizard thought it was hilarious.

"Lizard!" She held her chest with fright. He smiled at her.

"I'm sorry I didn't mean to scare you, but you weren't paying attention." She took a deep breath and shook her head.

"It's fine. So you ready?" Lizard nodded and grabbed her bag off the ground. They walked to his car. He put her bag in the back seat.

A few minutes later they were happily driving down the road. Autumn was singing along to the radio, but stopped suddenly. "Where are we going?" Lizard smiled.

"To my shop, Mark's busy and Thunder is an idiot. So that leaves your best brother to pick you up." Autumn smiled, she liked having another older brother. Finally she would have someone on her side. Cause Lord knows John and Randy were NEVER on her side.

"So, my best brother would you mind buying your favoritest sister a new cell phone?" Lizard glanced at her.

"Why would my favoritest sister need a new cell phone?"

"Cause her's is old and our daddy won't buy her a new one. Plus, you love me so much you have to." Lizard choked on air.

"You're ridiculous." Autumn smiled.

"I'm so serious. Daddy won't buy me a new one and this one is old."

"Your's is fine," he said glancing at her phone.

"No it's not, I've had it for two years already. Thunder has a new one, why can't I?" She turned to him. "Wouldn't you love to make your little sister over the moon happy?" Lizard raised his eyebrow and shook his head.

"Nope."

"Please?"

"Autumn, you have your own money."

"Yeah, but it's not a lot, besides you have a job. I mean one cell phone couldn't hurt." Lizard's eyebrows furrowed. Did she just imply that he was rolling in it? Lizard's eyes grew angry and cold. He hated it when women used him for his money.

"No, I'm not buying a new cell phone."

"But Lizard…"

"I said no brat!" he said banging his hand against the steering wheel scaring his little sister. Her smiled dropped in an instant and she sat back in her chair. Lizard watched Autumn deflate from her previously playful self. He shook his head angrily, he would have to learn her temperament.

"I'm sorry." Lizard groaned, ugh he didn't make her feel bad.

"No, look I'm sorry. I shouldn't have yelled at you. I'm sorry." She shook her head.

"It's fine." Lizard spent the next twenty minutes trying to get Autumn to talk or come out of that shell she'd recoiled into with no luck. He decided to ease his mood with some heavy death metal that only freaked out his little sister more.

By the time they pulled into Lizard pulled into the parking lot of Lizard's Custom Piercing and Tattoos she had recoiled into someone he could barely recognize. Her shoulders were slumped and her eyes were distant. He sighed heavily as they exited the car. Autumn hadn't spoken since his little outburst and he feared that they'd never connect again if he didn't do something soon.

* * *

Thunder started laughing as he and his friends worked on his car. He was getting a rematch since he'd lost so close. He knew could win, if only he hadn't missed that last shift. Shaking his head, he knew that tonight he'd have to leave a bit early and get his mind right. His phone started ringing...Dad.

"Hello?"

"Thunder, I need you home for dinner tonight."

"But you said that I could take Cobly out tonight."

"I know I did, but I really need you home, there's something I have to tell you." Thunder rolled his eyes.

"You can just say it later, I'll be home before curfew."

"No, son I have something really important to tell you guys and I need you here." The tone in Mark's voice shocked Thunder. He'd never seen Mark show that much emotion. His heart started beating rapidly.

"Dad, is something wrong?"

"Just be here for dinner." Thunder stared at his phone. His mind was swirling. In one swift motion he grabbed his jacket and grabbed Colby's keys.

"I have to go, you guys keep working on the car and I'll be back by eight." He left before anyone could respond. He needed to see his dad.

* * *

Autumn was sitting in her bedroom on the floor inside her closet as her heart poured out through her eyes. She couldn't stop the tears that seemed to be endless. She'd dealt with too much in her short life to have to go through this. Not now, not when everything was going so smoothly. _Please not now._ She squeezed her legs closer to her chest.

* * *

Downstairs Mark figured he'd let Autumn collect herself upstairs. He took a deep breath and turned to Thunder. He knew that Thunder would be just as freaked out as Autumn, only he would hide it better.

"T, come here." Thunder shook his head and looked at Mark with a blaze of fire.

"No." Mark shook his head and sighed, he really wasn't in the mood for this.

"T…" Thunder shook his head again.

"How long?"

"What?"

"How long have you known?" Mark sighed and glanced at Lizard who was now looking at his brother with a slight tinge of anger.

"A week." Thunder exploded off the couch and into Mark's face, or as close as he could get to it.

"You know about this for a week and you didn't tell us?"

"I didn't want you guys to freak out."

"Not to freak out, Dad you've been hiding this from us, how'd you think we'd react?" Mark knew he was upset but wouldn't stand for disrespect.

"Watch your tone." Thunder's anger was rising.

"My tone? Screw this." He turned and left Mark grabbed his arm and turned him around.

"Knock it off," he said in a tight voice. "I've had just about enough of you."

"I've had enough of this." He rolled his eyes. "I'm going out." Mark shook his head.

"No, it's family night stay here." Thunder rolled his eyes.

"What family?" he spat. "I'm out of here." Mark closed his eyes tight, he was dizzy. Lizard was up in an instant.

"You ok?" Mark nodded and took a deep breath.

"Yeah I'm gonna go and lie down for a while, can you check on Autumn for me?" Lizard nodded still looking concerned.

"Yeah sure thing." Mark smiled and patted Lizard on the shoulder.

"Thanks." Lizard watched Mark walk slowly upstairs then ran out the door. He was going to murder Thunder. Lizard caught Thunder just as he was getting into the car. Thunder's eyes set ablaze as he saw Lizard.

"What do you want?" the stifled rage was dripping off his voice. Lizard pulled Thunder out of the car by his jacket.

"Do you have any idea what you just did?" Thunder rolled his eyes and pushed Lizard's hands off of him.

"Why do you care?" Lizard gritted his teeth to restrain himself from killing his brother.

"Because you just sent our father into a dizzy spell." Thunder softened and looked away. Lizard sighed, the kid was just hurt. "Look, you have to think before you act. You've got to be strong Autumn depends on you, so does Dad." Thunder shook his head.

"Not anymore," he mumbled. Lizard looked confused.

"What, what did you say? Not anymore?" he said stepping closer towards his brother. Thunder rolled his eyes at his intimidation attempt. "You're an idiot you know that?" Thunder grunted.

"Screw you." Lizard stepped even more into his space.

"You know what you are? An insecure little punk. Dad's needs you and so does Autumn. Whether you want to believe it or not, they're always going to need you."

"Yeah right."

"You're seriously mental. Hello! Earth to Thunder, the world doesn't revolve around you." Thunder rolled his eyes and turned back to the car.

"Thanks for the big brother talk but I've gotta go." Lizard didn't appreciate the sarcasm. He grabbed the door before Thunder could close it.

"Double clutch." Thunder looked surprised. "Oh you thought I didn't know? Leaving every Thursday night just around the time for the races. Come on now, I'm smarter than that."

"Who knew?" Lizard sighed.

"Look man, I'm not trying to beat you over the head with advice but Dad doesn't need any more stress. So be careful." Thunder's eyes narrowed.

"Yeah I'll do that." Lizard nodded and pulled a card out of his wallet.

"In case you ever need anything. My cell is on the back." Lizard flicked the card at Thunder who rolled his eyes in response.

"Gee thanks." He slammed the door and sped out of the driveway. Lizard shook his head, before the month was over he was going to pound that kid. He grunted now to see Autumn.

* * *

Autumn was trying to compose herself but she was freaking out. She knew it as soon as her life got good it would be snatched from her. Hysteria started to consume her. Her father was dying. Mark was dying. It was his heart, she knew she'd broken his heart. A wail escaped from her body. She started rocking herself back and forth. She closed her eyes tightly as her mind drifted back to the conversation from an hour earlier.

_Mark had gathered his children all in front of him. He smiled to himself as Autumn was stretched out between her two brothers. Her head was leaning on Lizard's lap and her feet were draped across Thunder's lap, much to his dismay. Mark took a deep breath to stall even more. How could you tell your kids this? He closed his eyes tightly. He and Lizard had just met and were getting along great, but he knew something like this could permanently rock his world. Especially since his mother had passed away only a year earlier. Dinner was over and everyone was anxiously awaiting his speech. Mark sighed it was neither now or never. _

"_Guys um, I have something to say. I need your attention with no interruptions, ok?" Everyone nodded they just wanted to know what was wrong. "I um went to the doctor." He took a deep breath, this was harder to say than he thought. "They said," he sighed "Well you guys know how I've been kinda irritable and short lately. Well on top of that I've been tired and just not myself, so I went to see a doctor." He sensed the anxiousness. "Um, they say I need to have surgery because I have lots of blockages near my heart. I uh need open heart surgery." All the kids were staring at him. Autumn's face looked like it would shatter at any minute. Thunder was chewing his jaw. Lizard was just blank. Mark walked closer to them. "But guys we'll be fine, I'm going to be fine." He pulled Autumn off the couch and close to his chest. "You ok, Ladybug?" Autumn looked up at him and nodded, she couldn't tell him what she was really feeling, which was panic. _

"_Yeah."_

"_You sure?" She nodded again and squeezed him. _

"_I'm going to go and do some homework. I don't want to not finish it." Mark smiled sadly at her, he knew what she was doing. _

Autumn took a deep breath, why was this happening? She heard her door open and held her breath. maybe if they couldn't find her they'd leave her alone. No such luck, she heard feet walking across her floor. They were too light to be Mark's and too heavy to be Thunder's…Lizard.

"Autumn?" She shifted slightly hoping he wouldn't hear. A second later the door swung open. Lizard's heart broke at the sight of her.

"Hey, come here," he said kneeling down. Autumn crawled out of the closet and Lizard wrapped his arms around her. Tender moments were always difficult for him, but he tried to deal with it. Clearly she needed him. She buried her face in the crook of his neck and cried. Lizard didn't know what else to do, but rub her back.

Lizard had his little sister in his arms for what felt like eternity before she stopped crying. He couldn't believe how many tears had come out of her eyes. Autumn took a deep breath and sat back. She felt her ears flame with embarrassment as she looked at his now wet t shirt. She shifted slightly not knowing what to say. Lizard looked at her.

"Are you ok?" He knew it was lame, but he didn't know what else to say. She nodded.

"Yeah," she whispered. Lizard brushed her hair out of her face.

"You know it's going to be fine, right?" Autumn gave him an incredulous look.

"How can you say that when our father is dying?" Lizard raised his eyebrows in shock, what?

"Uh what are you talking about? He's just having open heart surgery." Autumn glared at him. Lizard gave a slight chuckle. "Autumn, it's a routine procedure. After a few months of recuperation and rest he'll be as good as new." Her head shot up and her eyes looked into his hopefully.

"Really? So he's not dying?" Lizard shook his head.

"No, he's not dying." Autumn flung herself at Lizard making the older man slightly uncomfortable, but he returned the gesture none the less. She pulled back and sighed.

"I uh guess this makes me stupid now, huh?" Lizard thought of a response and then put his index finger and thumb together separating the two by an inch.

"Just a little." Autumn smiled and punched him in the arm. "Wanna pretend this never happened?" She nodded gratefully and pushed herself off of the ground. Lizard stopped and turned her around.

"A, um I'm sorry about earlier." She turned and looked at him.

"No biggie, stuff's in the past, leave it there," she said pointedly. Lizard could take a hint.

"You feel up for some ice cream?" She looked at him a bit confused.

"Dad doesn't let us have ice cream after nine." Lizard smiled.

"Do I look like Dad?" Autumn raised her eyebrow.

"Uh yeah, you do, especially in the eye area…it's sorta creepy actually." Lizard narrowed his eyes and playfully shoved her out of the room. "You guys share the same beady little eyes it's so…" She didn't finish and Lizard picked her up over his shoulder and carried her down the stairs.

Thunder grunted, he was used to being in police stations, but not on a night like this. His heart was beating out of his chest. He was next in line to call someone to come get him and he couldn't dare call Mark. He couldn't lose his car. Who was he kidding, he couldn't lose Mark. He was one half of everything he had in the world. This might kill him. He couldn't breathe. He had no one else to call, he had to think quick. His turn was…right now. He could stay in jail, but then Mark would be pissed at him for missing curfew. Plus he'd disobeyed a direct order. Ugh, he wanted to scream with frustration. He grunted, the card! He pulled it out and picked up the phone. Please, please let him answer.

* * *

Lizard was sitting next to Autumn in the movie room playing Grand Theft Auto, he was so shocked that she'd never heard of the game. Needless to say she was enthralled by the sheer amount of violence, boy had his dad sheltered her. She was giggling madly as she evaded the cops. Lizard's cell rang without looking at the ID he picked it up.

"It's Lizard." Lizard grunted the person was only breathing. "You've got five seconds to talk or I'm hangin' up.

"Lizard!" Lizard sat up straight he knew that voice, even if it was scared. He glanced at Autumn who was still glued to the screen.

"Hello."

"Um, I don't have a lot of time and I um can't call Mark so uh…"

"So uh what?"

"Um can you come get me," Thunder paused, "please?" Lizard sighed, the kid tugged at his heart strings.

"You ok? Where are you?"

"Houston police station near Patton." Lizard grunted, if Mark didn't kill him he would.

"Yeah I'll be right there."

"Thank you." Lizard closed his phone in frustration and turned to Autumn.

"A, I've gotta go pick up a friend." She glanced at him and nodded. "I'll be right back."

"Ok, tell Thunder I said hi." Lizard stared at her. "I know my brothers," was all she said before resuming the game. Lizard shook his head.

"Don't' tell Dad." She laughed.

"Like I need to."

* * *

Mark sighed and stretched that nap was much needed, his head was clearer. He'd be glad when all of this was over. He needed to talk to his kids, make sure their heads were on straight. He was strong Mark Calaway all would go well. Standing up he decided to talk to Thunder first their 'talk' would be the longest. He knocked on his son's door with no response. Mark grunted, just because it was his room didn't mean he could ignore him. Mark opened the door but he wasn't in there. He sighed and headed downstairs. He found Autumn in front of the TV staring and mashing buttons wildly. Mark glanced at the TV and shook his head. "You know I hate that game." Autumn broke free of her trance and turned around shocked.

"Um hi. I was just um gonna stop playing now." Mark laughed and rolled his eyes.

"You might as well keep playing, you're hooked now." She smiled and looked down.

"You sleep well?" Mark smiled and nodded. He noticed the puffiness around her eyes.

"Ladybug, you been cryin?" She sighed and sat in a chair next to Mark.

"Yeah."

"Lady-" she shook her head.

"I'm fine now. Lizard explained everything to me. We're all good." Mark smiled.

"Really?"

"Yeah, he said you're strong and you'll be just fine so there's nothing to worry about." Mark was impressed he'd have to thank him for that.

"So you're good?" She nodded.

"Yep."

"Good deal." He paused, "so I see you and Lizard are bonding quite nicely." She nodded.

"Yeah he's a really cool guy. He's a lot like you though."

"Oh?"

"Yeah, he has a really short temper, but he's really over protective." Mark laughed. "No seriously, I thought T, was bad but Lizard's worse. I mean when we were at his shop earlier some guy said 'hello beautiful' and Lizard almost strangled him." Mark smiled. "It's crazy you're all nuts."

"I'm glad I don't have to worry about you with him." She shrugged.

"I wish you did." Mark pulled her close.

"You know he's just looking out for you."

"Yeah says the psycho dad he gets his genes from."

"Hey now," he said teasingly. Autumn stuck her tongue out. Mark noticed the bowls of now dried ice cream. "You had ice cream?"

"Me and Lizard." She put her hands up in defeat. "He said it was ok." Mark rolled his eyes.

"You and your big brothers." She shook her head.

"Just one of them, the other's a moron who is currently ignoring me." Mark shifted and glanced at his watch. It was 1230. Thunder was an hour and a half late.

"Yeah, where is he?" She shrugged knowing if she opened her mouth she'd snitch. Mark knew her ploy. "Autumn Mackenzie…" She sighed.

"I'm not really sure but…" They heard the front door open and Mark headed to see who it was. He was shocked to see Thunder walk in after Lizard.

"Where were you," was all Mark said. Lizard pushed Thunder forward.

"Tell him." Thunder hesitated.

"Tell me what?" Mark growled. Thunder took a deep breath and dropped his head.

"I um got arrested." Mark felt his face begin to glow with rage. Autumn watched on open mouthed. Oh boy.

"Explain," he growled through clenched teeth. When Thunder didn't respond Mark was across the room and in his son's face. "Answer me!" he bellowed loud enough to shake the walls. Autumn was frozen while Lizard stood there with his arms across his chest. Thunder however in a change of events looked ready to break.

"We were racing and the cops showed up. It was unexpected." Mark closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

"Autumn, upstairs. You have school." Autumn slowly walked away knowing arguing wouldn't be a good idea with her dad's given temperament. "What were you thinking?" Thunder lowered his head. Mark let out a yell that sounded more like a lion's angry growl. Thunder jumped. "Give me your keys." Thunder looked at him incredulously.

"Dad…"

"You not even want to begin to argue with me right now!" Thunder still didn't move. Mark let out a growl from the depths that shook the house at its foundations. He snatched the keys out of Thunder's slightly outstretched hand. "You are in so much trouble i swear you'll forget how to shift gears before you get back in that car." Thunder sensed Mark's anger rolling in droves off his body and recoiled. He'd never seen him this angry. Thunder dropped his head, he couldn't bear to endure the gaze that Mark was casting on him. "Look at me," Mark growled in a dangerously low voice. Thunder slowly raised his head. "School and in your room. Nowhere else. Do you understand me?"

"What about work?" Mark gave a scary psychotic laugh.

"Work was to pay off your car, well since that's mine now you don't need to work." Thunder sighed.

"Yes sir." Thunder had no idea what was wrong with him. When did he become so docile, so tamed? His mind was screaming fight back, yell, do anything but all his heart wanted to do was hug Mark and apologize. The conflicted nature was tearing him apart. Mark sighed at looked at Thunder who looked so broken inside.

"I don't think I could ever been any more disappointed in you than I am right now." Thunder felt his heart rip inside his chest the pain was unbearable and he felt his eyes water. He did his best to stay composed. "You better get upstairs, you're gonna be up early tomorrow." Thunder nodded. He walked quickly up the stairs he was happy to be headed to his room, his solace. He quickly changed into his shorts and lay back. All the emotions of the day were running through him. Joy, sadness, despair, fear, and now sheer sorrow. Sorrow that seemed to swallow him whole. He just wanted to crawl into a ball and never come out. Once again, he'd screwed up the best thing in his life. And for the first time in almost nine years Thunder Cloud Lewis cried himself to sleep.


	36. Chapter 36

_This last month has been a big ball of wow. First Lizard showed up, then Thunder 'the idiot' got arrested, then Dad had to get open heart surgery. It all happened so fast. Well at least it's over now. Everything should go back to normal tomorrow, that's when I go back home. Mark and Lizard made me stay with Lizard until Mark recuperated. They say it's so I can focus on school and not worry, but I know it's because they think I'm weak. I'm so sick of people thinking I'm weak! My whole life people have said that, one day I plan to prove them wrong! Anyway before I get even more upset, Thunder is grounded forever. His car has dust on it from sitting in the garage so long. I should feel bad for him, but I don't. He's an idiot. Obviously if you race on a crowded intersection then you're gonna get caught. Moron. Mark was so mad. He stayed up all night talking to Lizard trying to calm himself down. Too bad there was still a hole in the wall. Man, I thought I'd seen him mad, boy was I wrong. That whole was HUGE. Apparently there's more to Mark than meets the eye...or fist. _

Autumn set down two plates on Lizard's counter for dinner. She couldn't believe just how much fun she was having with her older brother. For the last month they'd been enjoying each other's company as a duo while Mark recuperated at home. Although she had wanted to be there Mark and Lizard both insisted she stay with Lizard for the sake of her psyche. They knew she'd react negatively to watching Mark be so weak for his first few days out of the hospital. He was fine though, Thunder was relegated to being home every day until further notice so Mark had plenty of help.

"Mack, hurry up I'm so hungry." Autumn looked at him confusedly.

"Uh, dude it's your night to cook." Lizard groaned.

"Oh no…you didn't cook? Man, I'm so hungry." Autumn rolled her eyes and headed towards the fridge.

"I'll cook something, but it's going to take a while or we can go out. Either way it's gonna take a while." Lizard shook his head.

"No that will take too long. I need food like now, before I start chewing on my arm." Autumn turned around and continued looking in the fridge. His frustration boiled over, he needed food now! Lizard jumped up and flung Autumn over his shoulder.

"Dad has a cook, we'll go over there." Lizard started moving like lightening as Autumn squirmed as she tried to get herself down off his shoulder. No luck, Lizard was already locking the door.

"Lizard that's like twenty minutes away!" Lizard continued toward the car, he didn't care about distance he cared about how free it was. Besides when he drove the highway it was only twelve if he went about eighty. He grinned mischievously. Free food always tasted way better. He set Autumn down and went around to the other side of the truck. Autumn just sighed, this was her brother.

"Buckle your seat belt, this is gonna be bumpy." Autumn took a deep breath and tightened the seat belt across her chest. She closed her eyes tightly and hoped they made it Mark's before Lizard killed them both.

* * *

Thunder sighed as he stood up from the kitchen floor. One month of hard labor was worse than he could've imagined. Day after day he had more back breaking work that left him with blisters and sunburn. He grunted his whole body ached and he was so tired. No to mention sad. He was so off kilter without his car. Cars were the one thing that calmed him down, there was just something about engines that brought him an inner peace. "Is dinner ready?" Thunder looked up at Mark who was a bit skinnier than before but still had a commanding presence.

"Almost she said to leave it in til about 430." Mark nodded. There was an awkward silence. Thunder chewed his lip and then turned away. "I'm going to go check the mail or something." Mark smiled.

"Take a seat." Thunder sighed and did as he was told. Mark looked at his son, he changed so much in four months. His bones were no longer protruding out of his skin and his snippy attitude was down to a minimum. He seemed so carefree. Mark could appreciate it. That's what he wanted for all of his kids…to be kids.

Thunder continued to chew the inside of his jaw, he was nervous. It had been four months and he was turning eighteen in a few weeks. He figured this was Mark's 'two weeks' notice' speech. Although he didn't want to believe it was a very real possibility. After all he had screwed up royally. Mark couldn't help but smile to himself, Thunder and Autumn were virtual twins in habit and not looks. You could easily see their emotions on their faces and kept to their pet habits.

"T, we need to talk. I uh just wanted to say thank you for helping out so much this month. It was really helpful to me." Thunder nodded as he looked into Mark's eyes. That was a difference, Thunder always looked him in the eyes while Autumn avoided his glare and usually looked at the floor. "I know your birthday is coming up soon, you have any idea as to what you want?" Thunder looked at him like he'd grown two heads.

"Uh um, I hadn't really thought about it." Mark smiled.

"Really you're turning 18 and you haven't given it any thought?" Thunder nodded sheepishly. "Oh well, well just let me know." Thunder smiled, he felt his stomach tightening. He shifted slightly.

"Um, Mark," Mark nodded for him to go on, "um am I staying here after you know I uh turn 18?" Mark smiled.

"No," Thunder's heart dropped. "You're going to college hopefully somewhere close so you're sister doesn't lose her mind." Thunder looked up at Mark who was smiling. "Come on, where else would you go? Your home is here, we're your family. Enough said." Thunder smiled.

"Thanks Dad." Mark smiled back. Mark opened his mouth to speak but the door flew open.

"Dad, I'm hungry!" Mark rolled his eyes as Lizard and his over dramatics entered the house. Autumn walked in behind him shaking her head.

"I've never seen him before in my life." Lizard rolled his eyes and headed for the fridge. Autumn came and wrapped her arms around Mark's torso. "Hey Daddy." Mark's heart continually melted as he looked into her big brown eyes.

"Whoa you look all grown up here, I don't believe my little girl is about to be sixteen." Autumn rolled her eyes.

"Almost sixteen means almost a car and almost a new curfew."

"Uh lemme think? Hmm, not gonna happen!" Autumn frowned and walked away without so much as glancing at Thunder. Thunder walked over towards Autumn and pulled her into the kitchen as Lizard came out stuffing roast beef in his cheeks. As they walked into the kitchen Autumn wrenched her arm free and glared at her brother.

"What's your problem?" Thunder took a deep breath.

"You've been frosty with me all month. I wanna know what's up?" Autumn rolled her eyes. "Seriously, tell me what's wrong?" Autumn shook her head and tried to walk away. Thunder grabbed her arm yet again. "Sky, talk to me." She turned around and glared at her brother.

"Like you'd care," Her eyes were narrowed and she was scowling. Thunder was thoroughly confused.

"What are you talking about? I've texted you ten million times and you don't respond."

"Why should I? Clearly all you care about is yourself." Thunder was starting to get angry.

"All I care about is myself? You're kidding me, right? This is coming from the girl who made her younger brother disappear because she felt left out. Gimme a break." Autumn snapped and started attacking her brother from behind. Thunder turned around and tried to deal with it, but didn't know how. Her fists were jamming furiously into his chest and abdomen. "What's wrong with you? Stop it!" Autumn didn't care, she continued her fury of punches. Lizard came in after hearing a ruckus. He surveyed the scene and then waited for a few more seconds smiling, she could fight if she really wanted to. Lizard finally decided to stop it and grabbed Autumn from behind.

"Whoa, Mack chill out." Autumn calmed down but the fire was still rolling in droves off of her. Autumn wrenched herself out of Lizard's grasp. She glared at Thunder.

"When I needed you the most, you only cared about yourself." With that she walked out of the room. Thunder wasn't going to let it end this way. Too many times he'd held his tongue. He wouldn't let history repeat itself.

"I couldn't help you, I could barely help myself," he screamed. Autumn turned around looked into her brother's eyes. The same eyes they shared and in them she saw utter pain. She felt a tear rolled down her cheek. All these years she'd been blaming him for leaving her, when it turned out he'd been blaming himself. Feeling like her emotions were winning she did what she does best…run.

"Whatever." Lizard and Thunder stared at her back as she walked away.

* * *

Hey guys here's the update! As always lemme know what you think. :D This story is looking to be done in probably two more chapters. So I'm thinking of a new story, got any ideas as to who should star? Also lemme know which story line you like…

A. Wrestler (TBA) meets street wise orphan

B. Vince or HHH takes an under privileged youth under his wing


	37. Chapter 37

Enjoy reading this special two parter-part one now, two later. See ya at the bottom!

_I never thought that I'd be able to say that life is good, but it really is. I mean think about it, Dad is doing great after his surgery. T's in college…who knew he was smart? Plus, Lizard is so awesome, well when he's not being overprotective. And John and Randy are doing great too. Randy got married last month and I was in the wedding! It was cool, I couldn't believe how happy he looked. And now, I'm getting ready to have my sweet sixteen and Dad opened his wallet! Who knew the cheapskate would actually give me an unlimited amount of money? Oh man it's going to be awesome. I'm so happy, I feel like I shouldn't say that, but it's going to be great. John and Randy are supposed to be here later today, they might even get here for my soccer game tonight, I cannot wait! _

The balloon hit Autumn in her face as she rolled her eyes. "Stop T." Thunder just laughed and did it again and again, _and_ again. Autumn grunted and turned to Mark who was sitting in his recliner watching TV. "Daddy tell him to stop!" Thunder shook his head and pushed Autumn. Without looking up from the TV Mark spoke.

"Thunder stop hitting your sister." Thunder shook his head and rolled his eyes.

"Snitch." Autumn laughed.

"Scared?" Thunder rolled over stood up.

"I'm through with this, Colby wants to meet me for dinner." Autumn's face dropped.

"But I thought you were gonna come to my game." Thunder sighed, she was always in so clingy. Their previous 'fight' disappeared just as all of them did, their bond went deeper than the scars they both shared.

"Um, I'm gonna catch the second half." Autumn shook her head, she knew he was lying.

"Whatever." Autumn didn't even try to stop him, she just stood up and walked over towards Mark. "Thank you for all of this, it's going to be the best night of my life." Mark couldn't help but to smile at his daughter. She was so beautiful. He couldn't believe how much she'd changed from that frail little girl who could barely look him in the eye. Mark stood up and engulfed his daughter in a hug. He kissed the top of her head.

"Anything for you, Ladybug." Autumn smiled against his chest. Mark looked down at Autumn and chuckled at the sleep in her eyes. "Late night?" Autumn pulled away and smiled.

"Sorta, me and Lizard stayed up listening to some rock." Mark's eyes bulged.

"He let you listen to that death metal crap?"

"Relax Dad, I'm not a china doll, I can handle it. It wasn't that bad, well after the first twenty songs or so."

"Why don't you go and take a nap before your game? I'll wake you up so you can go through your warm-up routine." She yawned in response simultaneously turning Mark's question into an order. He kissed her forehead and gently nudged her toward the stairs. She trudged up the stairs without any response knowing that it was futile. Without even taking off her shoes she fell face first on the bed and immediately fell asleep.

* * *

Mark smiled as he looked around. Autumn was super excited about her party tomorrow night and consequentially was having a great game. It seemed that her legs were moving faster than any other person's on the field. No one could stop her, she spent the whole game slicing through the defense like they weren't even there. He was one proud Papa, well for Autumn. As for Lizard and Thunder that was another story. Mark frowned as he watched Lizard scream into the megaphone and flirt with anything that moved near him. Mark was quite appalled by his son's utterly crude nature. There was a good portion of him that wanted to slap him silly, but he restrained himself. It seemed as much as his daughter was focused on the game that's how much his sons were focused on the women around them. Thunder who had arrived just as the second half had started wasn't paying attention to anything other than Colby's tonsils. Mark shook his head, he was a father of two hormonal male hyenas. Great.

Once the game was over, Autumn walked over to them with a huge smile on her face. That was her best game in a long time. "Mack, that was great, who knew you actually didn't suck?" Autumn frowned and punched Lizard in the stomach.

"Jerk." Lizard did what he always does and flung Autumn over his shoulder then started spinning. He knew if he did it she'd get pale and puke…just what he wanted. "Dad tell him to stop!" Lizard smiled as Autumn tried frantically to hold her lunch down. He was really enjoying this.

"Yeah dad, tell him to stop." Mark rolled his eyes and plucked Autumn off her oldest brother's shoulders and set her on her feet. He looked glanced at her checking for paleness.

"You alright?" Autumn glared at Lizard and then nodded. Mark slapped Lizard on the back of his head and turned to leave.

"Ow!" Autumn stuck her tongue out and followed Mark up the hill towards the cars. "Grumpy old man," Lizard mumbled under his breath. Autumn snickered as Mark turned and glared at Lizard.

"I heard ya." Lizard shook his head and kept walking.

"So." Lizard took a step back as Mark narrowed his gaze.

"Come again?"

"Nothin'." Mark nodded and continued walking. Thunder thought the encounter was priceless. Lizard had finally discovered just how much Mark commanded respect. He was becoming one of the obedient lab rats and Lizard was _loving _it.

"Scared of Daddy?" Lizard stopped misstep and slugged Thunder in his stomach causing Thunder to take a few steps back. He took a step back and charged at his older brother. Before anyone could react Lizard and Thunder were trading blows. Autumn smiled happily, this was fun to watch. Mark on the other hand was _just_ a hare annoyed. It had been a long hot day and he was not in the least interested in playing referee. He had turned and stalked towards his sons. In one fluid motion he grabbed them both by the collar of their shirts and separated them.

"Get in your cars and meet me at the house," he growled. Lizard backing down from no man opened his mouth only to be met with a glare that would kill six moose in an instant. Deciding not to further agitate his father Lizard shook off Mark's grasp and walked towards his truck. Objects in front of him seem to find their way into the air as the twenty-four year old threw a childlike temper tantrum. Mark shook his head as his son walked in front of him. Some things could be fixed and some couldn't.

* * *

It was the night of her pre-party with just friends and family. It was the night that started the best weekend of her life. Autumn happily ate her ice cream as her brothers glared at her. Mark had decided to enforce his annoyance over their scuffle with a house wide sugar ban on them. Neither man agreed with it, but what could they do, Mark was _scary _really scary_. _

"Dad, so tomorrow you're gonna walk me in right?' Mark smiled at his baby, she was so happy that this was going to be her night.

"Yes Ladybug, we're gonna make our grand entrance together." Autumn beamed wildly.

"Come here ya big lug." Mark felt his heart warm as he pulled her close. There was definitely a special bond between them. It had been cemented by their four tumultuous years together. Man, that felt like forever ago. He couldn't believe the girl in front of him was that same little brown haired girl who'd struck him with a broom stick. He felt a tear in his eye. Autumn Mackenzie Calaway, his ladybug, his daughter.

The doorbell rang. Autumn's eyes grew wide. "John! Randy!" Autumn leapt out of Mark's grasp and ran for the door. She opened it to reveal the duo she loved so much. "Hey guys!" She hugged them both wildly as John turned to Randy.

"You know, I think she missed us." Autumn pulled back.

"Who me? Miss you guys? No, never." The two man walked into the house.

"Sorry we're late."

"Yeah moron missed his fight." Randy rolled his eyes.

"Yeah sorry I had to pick up the kids gift." Autumn smiled.

"Ooh yay. You're forgiven." Lizard entered the room chewing on the whole salami roll.

"Mack, Dad wants you to help Colby figure out the playlist." He paused. "Woah, what are they doing here?" She shrugged.

"Lizard this is John and Randy. Guys this is my older brother Lizard. He's Mark's son." The two older men nodded in understanding. Mark had told them some about his new son, but not much. They cast an inspecting glare at him. Lizard rolled his eyes.

"Come on Mack, we can't have a party without music." Autumn slowly left the room.

"Play nice," she said as she rounded the corner. A silence engulfed them as a staring contest ensued.

"Look, my dad trusts you and so do i. Don't make a scene and we'll be fine." Neither of the older men spoke, they just walked towards the den where everyone else was.

John and Randy entered the room to find Mark and Autumn playing Rock Band. Of course he was terrible but it was fun none the less. The two men stayed in the corner choosing not to ruin the moment. "So what do you think about this Lizard character?" Randy shrugged.

"He just doesn't rub me right. There's something off about him, but I can't put my finger on it." John nodded.

"I agree."

Two hours later the tension had risen to an all-time high. It seemed that no matter what Autumn or Mark did to alleviate the situation would work. Something was going to give _very _soon. Autumn sat hoping that whatever did happen would happen quickly and not cause too much damage. Not if, but _when. _By now the party was dissipating and the tension was palpable. She yawned. John smiled at her.

"Hey, why don't you go sleep you've got a big day tomorrow." Autumn shrugged.

"Not sleepy really." John's eyebrows rose.

"Yeah right, your eyes scream sleepy. Just go to bed, we'll all be here tomorrow." Lizard rolled his eyes. Who'd this guy think he was. "Come on let's get you upstairs." Lizard had enough.

"Autumn, I need you for a second." Autumn sighed knowing that if she left the room something would happen, but she had to go and see what Mark wanted. She just hoped it didn't take too long.

"Cena, leave Mack alone. She's fine. She's almost sixteen years old. So stop trying to give her a bed time. Get real. It's her night, if she wants to stay up then she can. Don't boss her around." John stood up he was no fan of Lizard's.

"Look, I know how she operates alright. Lemme handle this and go back to throwing schoolboy temper tantrums." Lizard's eyes narrowed. "Yeah Mark told me how you think it's a good thing to throw things when you're angry. So before you can tell _anybody_ how to act, learn to control yourself, junior." Lizard took a menacing step towards John.

"Wanna see what else I can do when I'm angry." Randy stepped in between the two.

"Alright guys lets calm down here." He pushed John back and looked up at Lizard. "Relax, he's just doing what he's always done. Protect her. They go back a long way. Just let him handle it."

"Yeah like a dog." Randy rolled his eyes. It was Thunder the instigator.

"Shut up Thunder." Thunder was now standing in the mix of the encounter now.

"No, I'm with Lizard. You guys treat Autumn like she's a dog or something. Just leave her alone and let her be." Lizard nodded at his brother and the pounded fists. Randy sighed, he was trying to be the cooler head for once but it wasn't working. He grunted they were working his nerves too.

"Thunder, just shut up and stay out of this." Lizard's head snapped back.

"Whoa hold up, don't tell my brother what do. He's definitely a grown man. You know what why don't you both leave? No one wants you here."

"Autumn does, remember her? You know the little girl we practically raised all these years. The one we helped through nightmares or when she was so scared of what would happen because of your strung-out mother. We protected her, we did it then and we'll do it now." Thunder was seething, how dare he talk about his mother. Lizard sensed this and stuck his arm out to stop his little brother from killing Randy.

"Just leave. We'll be her protection from now on. She has brothers, she doesn't need you two." The room fell deathly silent then _it_ happened Thunder's rage boiled over and he swung landing a punch squarely on Randy's jaw. Then chaos ensued. Lizard and John fell on the ground wrestling to gain superior position. Autumn ran back into the room hearing the commotion. She tried to stop it but she couldn't.

"Dad!" She looked around in a panic, "Dad hurry," she screamed louder. Seconds later Mark came barreling into the room separating the four fighting men. He glared at them.

"What happened?" No one spoke. "Now!"

"He called my mother a junkie." Mark softened but kept his stance knowing this wasn't over. No one else spoke for a while. Autumn was holding her breath, please no.

"I'm out of here," Lizard looked at Autumn. "It's me or them," he said green eyes flashing. Thunder nodded and followed behind Lizard. John and Randy turned to leave too.

"We'll see you around Autumn."

"You're uh coming tomorrow right?" Her voice squeaked showing what she really felt.

"Maybe, we'll see." Autumn felt her world stand crushed as they walked out. She slid down the wall then pulled her knees to her chest. Earlier she'd had four brothers, now she had none. Mark watched the tears stream down her face. He was going to kill those idiots. Mark pulled her close.

"Ladybug it's going to be ok."

"Do you think this will ruin my party?" Mark closed his eyes tightly.

"No, they'll work it out." Autumn heard his words, but she wasn't so sure.

* * *

So I've decided to make it anywhere from two-three more chapters. As always lemme know! I love suggestions or guesses as to what will happen. :) Expect a possible update for CS tonight and maybe even one for TTB. :D


	38. Chapter 38

_Disclaimer: I DON'T own any WWE wrestlers; this is all from the mind of a brilliant scientist._

For Mattagot for her amazing three chapters of family ties…please check it out.

Other authors I recommend…NCJazzyKnights, rkoEngima, and calmdemeanors. :P They've got great stories.

* * *

Autumn lay awake in bed thinking. Mark had made her go to bed, a few minutes after everyone had left. She insisted that she wasn't sleepy and that she needed a ride to Lizard's but Mark held firm. It was clear in her eyes that she was sleepy, so off to bed she went. Now, a few hours later, her mind was busy hoping that her party wouldn't suck. Or worse, her family would magically pull itself back together.

Her mind went reeling back to the night's exhibition match. The image that held so firmly in her mind was Lizard's green eyes flashing in anger and then his back as it left the room. Even though they'd only been 'siblings' for a few months it felt like eternity. She needed him in a weird way. He seemed to be the perfect mix between Mark and Thunder, something all his own. They shared a special bond that she seemed to thrive on, he was her go to guy. He listened better than anyone she knew. She blew her hair out of her face. It was time to take matters into her own hands.

* * *

"Lizard, turn that death metal crap down!" Lizard nodded at his brother and turned the speakers up to its highest level. He sat in his office needing to be away from his brother's incessant nagging and smart comments. He needed a minute, just one.

"It's my house." Lizard sat down in his chair at his art table drawing. He needed to calm himself down. He had so many emotions running through him that he was afraid he'd break even more crap if he didn't do something to calm down. So he went back to his first love….drawing. He ignored his brother's incessant banging on the door and let his muse run free.

Thunder shook his head. He'd followed Lizard to his house after they'd left Mark's, but he was already at his ropes' end with his brother. Thunder thought he was a petulant freak, but Lizard took it to a whole new level. His ears were going to burst from the inside out if he didn't leave soon. He grunted and banged on the door to Lizard's 'office'.

"Lizard!" Thunder turned and walked out of the house, he couldn't take this crap anymore. He shrugged, maybe Colby would be interested in a late night movie. He looked down at his phone, maybe now was a good time to return Mark's nine jillion phone calls. He punched the number to his father.

"Boy, who do you think you are?" Thunder sighed.

"Hi Mark."

"First of all its Dad and second of all answer the first question." Thunder smiled, he couldn't help but to poke fun.

"What?"

"Don't play dumb with me. Who do you think you are? When I call you, you answer my phone calls." Thunder sat in his car listen to Mark rant and rave knowing better to interrupt. He merely let Mark talk himself out. When he heard his father sigh he figured it was a good time to interject.

"This is all well and good, but I have some chicken to fry." Mark couldn't help but to laugh at his son.

"Anyway, I've said my peace. What are you up to?" Thunder smiled, he was glad he'd dodged another bullet.

"Um, it's pretty good. I'm leaving Lizard's now. Gonna head to go and meet the gang soon. Hang out, you know."

"Thunder," Mark ground out.

"Dad, I know, relax. I won't get arrested again, God knows the last time was not worth it." Mark smiled, he was glad his punishment had made an impact.

"Alright, I'll see you later."

"Bye." Thunder hung up his phone smiling. What a family.

* * *

Autumn pulled up in front of Lizard's house and killed the motor and set her helmet on her four-wheeler. She just hoped she'd gotten back to home before Mark realized what she'd done. Autumn took a deep breath and opened the door. Of course, her seven foot tall brother didn't need to lock his door. She rolled her eyes and followed the noise to her older brother. Autumn cringed at the sheer blast of death metal. She pulled her backpack off of her back and opened the door. At first Lizard didn't hear her, but her presence became duly noted when a deafening silence filled the room. Lizard turned and glared at the assailant with blazing green eyes. The fire softened as he saw his little sister standing there. He took a deep breath.

"Come here, Squirt." Autumn smiled and walked across the room hugging her brother. "How'd you get here?" Autumn smiled shyly and rubbed the back of her neck.

"Um."

"Um? You know what? Nevermind. Let's not worry about that. So tell me why you're here." She shrugged and looked at the floor.

"I uh, was worried." Lizard was confused.

"About what?"

"Um, I thought you were going to leave my life." Lizard dropped his pencil and looked into his sister's eyes. He used his eyes to urge her on. "You said, them or you. I didn't choose, I uh thought I'd lose you." Lizard sighed.

"Mack, I didn't mean to." Lizard ran his hands through his hair and blew out a breath. "Come here." He pulled Autumn onto his lap and turned his desk chair to focus on the drawing sitting in the clips. Autumn gasped.

"That's me." Lizard looked at it, he wasn't really paying attention to his feverishly moving pencil. He looked at the drawing of the girl with twisted flowers and hearts behind her. It was weird, in the background there was a drawing of Mark's face in his comfort scowl. Autumn glanced at Lizard.

"You want it?" She nodded.

"Yes please." Lizard smiled and unclipped the drawing. Autumn reached into her backpack and pulled out her sketchbook. She flipped through the pages and then pulled out one picture. Lizard smiled as she handed it to him. It was a drawing of her and him and Thunder from their day at the rodeo. It had been a long and hot day which they all hated, but somehow turned into an adventure as the night culminated in them running from the cops, which was the scene sketched out. Lizard threw his head back and laughed.

"Man, I never thought I'd see Thunder run so fast."

"Me either, I thought he'd pee himself when the cops started chasing us." The laughter consumed the room and seemed to melt away all their problems. After a moment of silence, Lizard spoke.

"Are we ok now?"

"Yeah I guess, I mean we are, I can't say anything about the others." Lizard took a deep breath, he was going to have to bite the bullet on this one.

"Look, don't worry about that. I'll make sure your night is awesome." Autumn smiled softly, she wanted to believe him, but it seemed so impossible.

"You promise?"

"Cross my heart, and hope Randy dies." Autumn's eyes bulged out of her face…what? "Whoa wait no. not that Randy, my snake Randy." Autumn looked at her brother like he was insane. "Come on, I'll introduce you guys." Without waiting for Autumn to respond, Lizard threw her over his shoulder and walked into his snake sanctuary. "I can't believe I haven't brought you in here before."

Autumn was a bit panicked at first, but finally relaxed as Lizard showed her how to handle Randy. His other two snakes stayed in the cage though. Those suckers were _huge_. Lizard smiled as he watched his sister fall in love with his snakes like he'd done so many years before. Lizard's phone rang...Dad.

"Hey Dad." Lizard watched all the color drain from Autumn's face. "What do you mean she's not in her room?" Autumn made a face that stretched her neck muscles so that her lower lip was pulled downward and her neck vains stuck out…oops. "Relax Dad, I've got Mack right here." Autumn heard Mark's voice raise and become forceful. Lizard hung up the phone and winced.

"You've done it." Autumn sighed and handed the snake back to her brother.

"Maybe I can make a run for it." Lizard shook his head definitively.

"No, no no, you definitely don't wanna do that. You see that man who was just on the phone might murder you if you ran away. Stay here, trust me." Autumn nodded still really pale.

"Come on, I'll get you something to eat." Needless to say, when Autumn didn't move Lizard flung her over his shoulder.

Fifteen minutes later, Autumn and Lizard were sitting at the table talking. Lizard of course was being the big brother poking fun at his little sister. It was just _so_ easy. "Wait, lemme get this straight, you rode all the way across town on your four-wheeler?" Autumn frowned as Lizard about died laughing. "Whoa hang on lemme call Thunder, 'cause you've just taken the cake as dumbest Calaway kid. Hands down!" Autumn scowled.

"Not funny." Lizard shook his head and started laughing again, but it was quickly silenced as they heard a truck door slam. Autumn's face dropped as a very pissed Mark Calaway entered the room.

"Get here." Autumn walked towards Mark like she'd been shot out of rocket. She kept her gaze planted solely on the ground. "Up here." Slowly she lifted her head. She'd expected him to be glaring down at her, but instead he was scowling at her like he was ready to slaughter her. She gulped and fought the urge to drop her eyes yet again.

"Autumn Mackenzie," the words flowed off Mark's tongue with distinct grit and anger. Autumn held her breath.

"Y-Yes sir."

"Consider your party canceled." Autumn's eyes became saucers and tears poured from her eyes. Please God no!

* * *

Alrighty, shouts out to Mattagot! Please review guys, I love em, lemme know what you think. I'm still tweaking how I'm going to have this pan out. So lemme know some suggestions and they just might get used. : )

Whaddya think of Marks' reaction? Too much or too little?


	39. Chapter 39

Disclaimer: I DON'T own any WWE wrestlers; this is all from the mind of a brilliant scientist.

For Mattagot for her amazing story Family Ties and now Sins of the Father…please check it out.

Other authors I recommend…NCJazzyKnights, rkoEngima, and calmdemeanors. :P They've got great stories.

I've got a poll on my profile...please answer it. :) I'd like to know what story to focus on. Thank you guys so much!

Sorry it took so _long_!

_

* * *

"Get here." Autumn walked towards Mark like she'd been shot out of rocket. She kept her gaze planted solely on the ground. "Up here." Slowly she lifted her head. She'd expected him to be glaring down at her, but instead he was scowling at her like he was ready to slaughter her. She gulped and fought the urge to drop her eyes yet again._

_"Autumn Mackenzie," the words flowed off Mark's tongue with distinct grit and anger. Autumn held her breath._

_"Y-Yes sir."_

_"Consider your party canceled." Autumn's eyes became saucers and tears poured from her eyes. Please God no! _"Tell Lizard goodbye and get in the truck." Autumn looked at the ground and wiped her tears away quickly. She gave Lizard a hug and ran out of the room fighting back tears leaving the elder two Calaway men to digest what'd just happened.

Mark shook his head and blew out a deep frustrated sigh. Lizard stared at his father knowing that it was breaking Mark's heart to do this. He knew how much this party meant to her, they both did. Lizard couldn't help but to feel partly responsible for it being cancelled, after all she'd come to see him. Lizard stepped forward and let out a breath.

"Um Dad?" Mark looked at his son.

"Yeah?"

"Ya know you don't have to cancel her party." Mark stared at Lizard and then shook his head.

"No, she made a choice she'll deal with the consequences." Lizard shook his head.

"You know she wasn't trying to disobey you, she just can't deal with loose ends." Mark raised his eyebrow. "You know how she is." He paused, "she's sensitive." Mark frowned he knew that all too well.

"But she _did_ disobey me and she put herself in danger." Mark shook his head in utter frustration. "Do you know what could've happened to her?" Mark shuddered. "Riding her four-wheeler across town at two in the morning! You know what kind of freaks are out this time of the night? Not to mention that thing doesn't have any headlights. If a truck would have been near her there was no way it would have seen her…" Mark broke off not bearing to finish the statement. Lizard stepped forward and looked his father in his eyes.

"I know, but this party means everything to her. _Everything._" He ran his hands through his hair. "If you take this away, it'll crush her."

"She'll get over it." Damian opened his mouth to speak, but Mark shook his head. "Not unh, end of discussion." Lizard sensing Mark wasn't in the mood to argue, didn't argue and let Mark walk out. Once he heard the truck pull out of his driveway he threw his glass across the room.

* * *

Mark sighed as he heard soft cries from the backseat. She tugged at his heart so hard. It was killing him to do this. It really was. Mark drove for a few more minutes but he couldn't take it anymore. Her cries were invading his mind and gnawing at his thoughts. Slowly he pulled over to the side of the road. Her crying persisted, Mark took a deep breath and rubbed his face. "Baby, come here."

Autumn sat up and quickly wiped her eyes, she hated the fact that she was crying over this, but she couldn't help it. This was her one night to shine and she blew it. So much for her coming out party. She climbed over the seat and sat down in the passenger seat. The car was consumed in silence for a while as for a moment as Autumn seemed to compose herself. Mark took a deep breath and turned to face his daughter. He opened his mouth, but Autumn beat him to it. "Daddy, I'm sorry I didn't meant to disobey you. I wanted to see Lizard, and I knew you wouldn't let me, then I couldn't get a taxi. I didn't mean to worry you. Please, I-I'm sorry." All the words came out in a jumbled rush causing Mark to understand nothing more than a few words here or there. Autumn buried her hands in her face. "I really didn't mean to."

"Whoa Baby, calm down. What?" Autumn took a deep breath and wiped her fresh tears.

"I didn't mean to scare you, I just really needed to see Lizard."

"You could've waited and went in the morning or better yet called him." Autumn shook her head.

"No, I couldn't. I can't sleep not knowing what's going to happen. I had to do this." Mark looked in her eyes.

"Just like I have to punish you for disobeying me." Autumn looked down at her lap.

"It's not the same," she mumbled. Mark ground his teeth.

"What'd you say?"

"It's not the same. Something inside of me twists when people I love fight." Mark sighed and pulled back onto the road. He had a lot of thinking to do.

* * *

Lizard banged on his brother's apartment door. Sighing as he heard a violent wave of rap music from the inside. Who listened to that crap? He rolled his eyes…if Thunder didn't answer the door after the next knock he was kicking the door in. Lizard gave one more bang, he smiled and pulled his leg back. "Lizard!" Lizard set his leg down. Thunder emerged from the house with messy hair hanging down in front of his eyes in a pair of boxer shorts.

"Aww man, I was gonna have some fun," Thunder didn't like his smirk.

"Whaddya want?" Lizard rolled his eyes behind his sunglasses and pushed Thunder into the house.

"Get dressed, we got some stuff to do." Thunder grunted.

"I'm kinda busy." Lizard rolled his eyes and grabbed his brother by his collar. "Now," he growled.

* * *

Autumn sighed as she swirled her cereal around in her bowl. Her night had sucked. She didn't sleep well. Mark was still adamant that her party wasn't going to happen. She sighed, she'd never known him to change his mind. Mark sighed as he watched her mope. She'd been moping since she'd woken up. Mark sighed, his heart hurt for the girl, but he needed her to think before she acted.

"Ladybug, why don't you go and get some rest, you seem tired?"

"I'm not really tired." She continued swirling her cereal around the bowl. "I'm just eh." Mark shook his head, he knew exactly what was wrong.

"Alright, well why don't you go and make sure that the guest room is ready for your brother?" She shrugged.

"Sure." Mark shook his head and looked at her mope slowly towards the kitchen. He sighed. He didn't know if he could go through with this. Open heart surgery was nothing compared to this. Shaking his head, Mark walked into his office, he needed to clear his mind.

* * *

"Open up!" John groaned and walked towards the door.

"What?" Lizard looked at the man who was in jeans and a t-shirt.

"Um you need to get dressed, Mack's party starts soon." John rolled his eyes.

"Mark told me the party was cancelled." Lizard rolled his eyes.

"I'm un-cancelling it, now get dressed. You too oil-sheen." Randy merely rolled his eyes.

"Mark said, she was being punished for riding her four-wheeler across town." Lizard grunted impatiently.

"I know what my dad said, anyway the party is back on. So be there at seven." Lizard turned and walked down the hallway. He had a lot of running around to do. John stood staring at the man's back as he walked away.

-"Hey Shawn, come on in." Mark smiled and reached down grabbing the little brown haired boy. "Hey buddy."

"Hi, Uncle Mark."

"Why don't you go and give your sister some company? You can cheer her up."

"Yes sir," he said saluting Mark and then hit the ground running up the stairs.

"Trian, don't run!" Mark smiled and shook his head walking further into the house. "So, Mark, how's Autumn taking the news?"

"Pretty bad. I think she cried herself to sleep." Shawn shook his head.

"Poor kid, you know…" Mark shook his head.

"Not unh, don't start. I'm not gonna budge on this one."

"Relax, I'm not going to try and change your mind. I just think you should remember how important this is to her."

"I know." The two men sighed and let the silence engulf them.

* * *

_That Night_

Autumn smiled and looked around the magical room. The scene was something out of a fairytale. She was dressed in her powder blue dress with a crown planted firmly a top her head. Happiness fell off of her in droves as she saw her family enjoying themselves across the room. Trian was dancing in the center of the floor, he was such a little showman. She shook her head, he was definitely the Showstopper's son. John and Randy were dancing with their dates, while standing as far they possibly could away from Lizard and Thunder. Thunder was hanging out with his crew and happily enjoying his time with Colby. Lizard…well he was being Lizard. In other words, he was flirting with everything that moved this side of eighteen. She rolled her eyes, green eyed hyena. Autumn couldn't stop smiling, this night was turning out to be the absolute best of her entire life. Who would have thought she'd ever have a party where her artwork was on display for the world to see. Her drawings were on ever table, her paintings hung from the ceiling like tapestries, and her sculptures were centerpieces. She shook her head, what had she ever done to deserve this? She felt a tap on her shoulder.

"You look beautiful." Autumn looked down and smiled at her brother.

"Thanks buddy." Trian smiled and they play fought after Autumn ruffled his hair. Lizard came out of nowhere and grabbed the little boy off of the ground.

"Hey put me down!"

"Nope." Autumn smiled as she watched Trian struggle with all his might to get out of her brother's grasp with no luck.

"Dinosaur!"

" M'name's Lizard, little weed eater!" Autumn giggled at Lizard's reference to Trian's outfit. In true Texas boy fashion, Trian was decked out in a pair of dress pants and a camouflage shirt with the sleeves cut off. Thunder grunted and smacked Lizard on the back of his head.

"Put him down, man." Lizard rolled his eyes at his brother's irritation. He gave his younger brother an evil smirk.

"I like your attitude," he stepped into his brother's space, "but if you ever do that again, you'll be eating through a tube for the rest of your natural life." Thunder rolled his eyes and stepped back. Autumn smiled, Lizard successfully intimidated Thunder yet again. Oh yeah, it was _definitely_ a good day.

Mark walked up behind the group of bickering kids and smiled. Who knew four years ago that any of this would be possible? His mind flashed back to that special day.

_"What's her name?" Sammy smiled. Mark chuckled and stuck his finger in Sammy's face. Before he could get his words out Autumn came running out of the building swinging furiously. _

_"Autumn, why'd you do that?" Autumn looked between the large man who was now glaring at her and rubbing his shin and Sammy. She lowered her head._

_"I thought he was going to hurt you," she said with her head down just above a whisper. Sammy shook her head and pulled her close rubbing her back soothingly._

_"No, Sweetie, Mark's an old friend, we were just talking. "_

_"Oh, I heard him yelling and I thought -" her head was still down and now she was feeling really dumb. "I'm sorry." Mark looked on at Sammy, at first he was furious when the kid had struck him with the broom, now he just felt sorry for her. She seemed so fragile. Sammy gently grabbed Autumn's shoulders and turned her to face Mark. "What do you say?" Autumn kept her head toward the pavement. Sammy sighed. "Come on pick your head up, we've practiced this. Go on." Slowly Autumn's head rose and she met Mark's green eyes._

_"Sir, I'm sorry I hit you with the broom." Mark looked deep into the little girls eyes, they were sincere. He nodded. _

_"Autumn, why don't you go sit on the step for a minute? I need to talk to Mark for a few more minutes." Autumn nodded and walked away. She set the broomstick on the ground and rested her chin on her hands. _Mark hadn't known it then, but that was the moment he fell in love with her, the second his green eyes had locked on her brown ones he'd never been the same.

He tapped his daughters shoulder and she turned around. He was in awe of her beauty. Her smiled lit up the room. He felt a tear slip down his cheek. "May I have this dance?" Autumn smiled and gladly nodded.

"Why yes you may." Mark led her to the dance floor. The locked hands and the father daughter dance ensued. Autumn let the beautiful moment engulf her as her mind drifted back to the years past. All of their walks through the woods, the nights he'd held her after those horrendous nightmares, all the nights they enjoyed each other's company as they watched a movie or played a game. Autumn smiled at the memories that had changed her life, but for her there was one scene that she'd never forget. On that monumental day at the airport when she'd been feeling unwanted and inadequate, Mark had come to the rescue and made it all better. He'd made her fears go away and showered her with the security she always desired. He was a daddy, her daddy, and she loved him. My God, did she love him.

"What you thinkin' about Ladybug?" Autumn smiled.

"Nothin' really." She shrugged. "Just thinkin' is all." Mark smiled and kissed her head as the song ended. He grabbed her hand and led her back to the family she'd come to love. Everyone both old and new had gathered for her birthday. How special it made her feel.

"Autumn, you look, just wow."

"Yeah, who knew our little summer breeze would grow up into, _this?_" Autumn rolled her eyes.

"Thank you guys for coming. I thought for a second I'd never see you guys again." John and Randy exchanged glances but Autumn shook her head. "It's all water under the bridge, all that matters is that you're here now." Autumn smiled and the beautiful banter of the night continued. She was in heaven. She had her five brothers and life was good.

* * *

The party was a hit, the night went well and everyone was happy, well sort of. Trian was holding an ice pack to his eye after Thunder had launched him into the air with his feet causing the small boy to shoot across the room and smack his face on the table. The result was a black eye for Trian, a bruised jaw for Thunder after Lizard had corrected the situation, and a headache for Mark. Mark shook his head. They all had a tie to each whether it was by blood or by nature, but man were they all similar. You couldn't separate those four if you tried. They shared a bond no man could break, in times of need they banded together to rectify the wronged. He smiled he loved these kids. They couldn't replace what he'd lost, but they were special all their own. No matter the ties of blood, this tight knit family was bound by the strongest of thread…love. What united them is what also divided them, but in the end it didn't matter, they always came back to the center…Mark Calaway.

Mark was drawn out of his thoughts by a presence on the couch next to him. He turned to his see baby smiling happily at him. "Hey Daddy."

"Hi, Sugar."

"You haven't called me that in super long."

"Really?"

"Yeah, the last time you said it was the day you yelled at me for forgetting to call you." Mark cringed, he'd forgotten about that day.

"I'm sorry about that."

"Don't worry about it, after what you did today, I'd say we're all square."

"Oh really?"

"Yep, you let me have my party and for _that_ I'll be eternally grateful."

"I'll remember that the next time you forget to do your chores." Autumn rolled her eyes…parents.

_Mark was downstairs pacing, his heart was chewing at him. He couldn't do this. After all he'd put her through, he could overlook this one time. He shook his head and walked up the stairs. He went to open Autumn's door but heard Autumn and Trian talking. _

"_Sky, why are you so sad?" Autumn smiled._

"_Because I'm an idiot."_

"_I don't think so."_

"_Oh?"_

"_Yep, I think you're kinda smart. You can do all kinds of math, and you know how to draw real good." Autumn smiled and hugged her little brother. _

"_Wanna play on the Wii?" The little boy nodded happily. _

_Mark took a deep breath and entered. The pair looked up from the game. He saw the look in his daughter's eyes and his heart lurched. Oh boy. 'You can do this Mark.' _

"_Hey Trian, your dad is about to leave, why don't you go and say goodbye?" Trian being as smart as he was smiled and walked out of the room. A few tense moments ensued before Mark pulled out his cell phone. "Come here," he said making his daughter cringe. Slowly she walked towards him. Mark handed her the cell phone. She looked at it then up at him with a glimmer of hope in her eyes. "I need you to call all of your friends and tell them the party is cancelled." Autumn deflated and looked down. She tried to dial the number but she couldn't that was like watching her dream flush down the toilet. She couldn't bear to do that. Tears fell from her eyes as she shook her head. She handed Mark his phone back._

"_I-I can't." Mark nodded and grabbed her face in his hands forcing her to look at him._

"_You remember this the next time you want to disobey me." Autumn dropped her eyes feeling more tears well up. "Now, you need to hop in the truck, your aunt is going to take you and the princess to get your hair done." Autumn looked up at Mark in surprise._

"_You mean?"_

"_Yes, now hurry up and change. The party starts in four hours." Autumn squealed and hugged Mark._

"_I'll never do anything like that again. I swear." Mark rolled his eyes. _

"_Thank you, thank you."_

"_Don't thank me, thank your brothers who kept strong arming all the vendors." Autumn scrunched her eyebrows. "Those two idiots called everyone and 'uncancelled' the party." Autumn smiled. "Go on now, get going." She gave him a quick hug and scampered off, Mark shook his head as he watched her run. She definitely had his heart. _

When Autumn came out of her thoughts she found Mark holding something in front of her face. She shook her head quickly to get rid of the cobwebs. Keys? She looked at Mark, then the keys, then at her brothers who were smiling.

"Not unh?" Mark smiled.

"Uh huh."

"No?"

"Yes." Autumn squealed.

"Seriously?" her voice rose to a high squeal. Mark nodded.

"Blue Mercedes Benz." Her mouth dropped and her arms flew to her father's neck.

"Thank you!" Mark smiled and started coughing, she was choking him. "Ooops, sorry." She paused. "A car!" She sprinted out the door with her brothers hot on her tail. She started jumping up and down. The car was an absolute beauty. It was top of the line with leather seats and a navigation system. "Yes, yes, yes!" Mark stood back smiling as he watched her enjoy her present. He couldn't be happier with all the joy she'd brought to his life, he was happy he could return the favor.

Mark looked over at Lizard who had smacked his brother in the chest. He rolled his eyes. "Do you always have to worry about yourself? My God, it's here freaking birthday and you're worried about why she doesn't have to pay for the car. Get over yourself." Thunder shook his head and punched his brother in the jaw. Mark didn't even try to stop it as he walked towards the Mercedes.

"Get in and drive." Autumn smiled wildly as she climbed into the driver's seat. Mark crammed himself in the passenger seat, with Trian happily buckling himself into the back. The trio drove down the road leaving Lizard and Thunder to fight. Mark shook his head. It wouldn't be a night with the Calaways if somebody didn't end up bruised. He sighed, those were his kids.

"Daddy, so does this mean I get a new curfew?" Mark shook his head. He just couldn't win.

* * *

A/N Thanks you guys for reading! This has been my most reviewed story and I really appreciate it. I will do an epilogue, which will be done either tonight or tomorrow. Please review and let me know what you thought. Whether you just started reading or you've been here the whole time. Please lemme know.

A special shout out to: Cena's baby doll, Souless666, Sonib89, Batista's wife, SimplyPriceless2012, Takersfan, Lynnevicious, SnowAngel2009, NCJazzKnights.-sometime during the story they reviewed and made me happy. I truly appreciate reviews and I thank you guys for taking the time to do them.

A MEGA special shoutout to Mattagot- who I do believe reviewed every chapter. THANK You! And who was the most integral person in the creative process this side of Jesus Christ himself. I have to say thank you for allowing me to utlize Damian as he gave the story so much depth. And I appreciate all that you did for me during the story and in Family Ties :P. Never stop writing I love your stories. :D

Stay tuned for the epilogue!


	40. Epilogue

_Two Years Later_

Autumn smiled happily enjoying their family outing. The Calaway clan had assembled one more time in honor of another big night…her high school graduation. The early part of the day was spent with family and friends celebrating the grand day, now they were all enjoying their time fishing. The five of them were in the middle of the ocean enjoying the peaceful start to the summer.

Autumn was happy, she had her Dad and her brothers. Her life was a good one. In the last two years, so much had changed while so much had stayed the same. She was still enjoying painting and art as a whole, but now she focused mostly on soccer. She'd found that once the nightmares had stopped, so had her need to paint and draw. Her journaling had almost ceased completely. Autumn smiled as she remembered what Sammy had told her. 'When you get over your past, your nightmares will go away'. She smiled at the thought, it was apparent that Autumn Mackenzie Calaway had left Autumn Lewis in the past. Her life was new and it was good.

She jerked her head around after hearing a splash. Lizard's head popped up glaring daggers at his brother. Thunder only smiled…he'd finally won. Trian kicked Thunder in the knee. "Why'd you do that?" Thunder picked his brother up and threw him at Lizard. Autumn's eyes popped out of the socket.

"I'm the king of this castle." Thunder was enjoying gloating. Mark came up behind his son and also tossed him overboard.

"No, I'm the king." Autumn smiled, the more things changed the more they stayed the same.

That night...

Autumn was laying on her stomach on the floor of the balcony alone. After a few hours with her brothers she'd often found herself in need of some alone time to clear her head. It wasn't that she didn't love them, it was just sometimes, they were a bit too much. She sighed, her life was a bit complicated these days. She was going to be the first one in the family to move out of Houston _and _Texas. She was heading to California on a soccer scholarship. Her stomach stayed in knots over the idea of leaving her family, but she _needed _to do this. It was a make or break type of situation. She sighed.

"Ladybug." Autumn shook her head, leave it to Mark to come and find her when she wanted to be left alone.

"Hey," she said somberly. Mark smiled down at his daughter and took a seat. The two stayed silent for a long while. Neither of them wanting to say anything. This was hard on both of them. After a few more minutes he spoke.

"I'm going to miss you." She glanced at him and then returned her gaze to the city skyline. "Ladybug, we've been through a lot," he paused. "A whole lot." He took a sip of his drink. "But we never gave up on each other. We made it through the hard times and the good times and we'll make it through this." Autumn turned and stared at him. "I'm still your dad and I'll be here when you come home on holidays, I be here when you need to talk after a long day, I'll _always _be here. No time or space can keep us apart. We said we wouldn't turn back and I don't break my promises." Autumn smiled as she looked at the skyline. She rolled over and set herself on the bench next to Mark. He wrapped his arm around her shoulders pulling her close to his chest and kissed her head. "I love you." She smiled. She loved him more than he could ever know.

"I love you too." Mark smiled and the two stayed like that for a long while. It was so peaceful neither one of them wanted to move. Mark grunted as his cell phone vibrated.

"Well, we're going to have to cut this gathering short. Your brothers have just been put into holding cells for disturbing the peace. I've gotta go and get them out." Autumn shook her head and got up too.

"Those two never cease to amaze me." Mark rolled his eyes.

"Oh, I know."

"You know, I think I'm going to write a book about this family." Mark turned and raised an eyebrow.

"Oh really?" She shrugged.

"Yeah, I guess, I've been thinking about it for a while. I'll call it Calaway Crazies." Mark shook his head.

"Horrible title." Autumn rolled her eyes and grabbed her jacket. "Where are you going?"

"With you, duh. I'm not going to miss this for anyone." She shrugged. "Sides, you said it, we're a family who don't turn our backs on each other. That goes for all of us, not just me and you." Mark smiled and opened the door for her to walk out of. She snapped her fingers as she walked down the hallway. "That's it!"

"What?"

"The title of my book...No Turning Back." Mark shrugged and smiled.

"That could work."

* * *

_Five years later_

In five years Autumn Calaway's life had changed drastically. She now lived in California as a writer for the Los Angeles Times and did freelance photography. She couldn't believe her good fortune. She had a high paying job and a family who loved her. What more could she want? Autumn smiled as she held her snake, Copper while she cleaned his tank. She'd inherited her love of all things reptilian after she'd held Baby Randy at Lizard's house almost seven years ago. Ever since that day she'd been fascinated by all the slimy creatures that kept Thunder away from her apartment. Who knew the mongrel had a fear of reptiles? She smiled evilly at the memory of Lizard throwing a baby Frankie at Thunder who squealed and fled the house. That had been such a good day indeed. Autumn like her older brother loved her babies. Copper and her iguana Frankie were her two favorite things in the world, that is just outside of her family.

Autumn looked up from the tank she was cleaning and smiled. It was the summer so Trian was staying with her for two weeks. He was such a joy at fifteen. His small body was now a lean frame identical to Thunder's. What scared her was how similar they looked. From their eyes, to their walk, to even the way they spoke. She shuddered, one Thunder was enough. Autumn heard her name being called and tried to hear where it was coming from. "Sky! Sky!" She turned to see her younger brother sprinting towards her. "Sky!" Trian handed her the newspaper. Autumn's mouth dropped at the sight. "You did it Sky! You're number one!" Autumn stared down at the paper.

**New York Times Bestseller**

_**1. No Turning Back-A.S Calaway **_

Autumn hugged her brother and smiled. What a great life she'd lived. What a great life indeed.

to Mattagot...you always inspire me to go further. :D


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